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France set to eliminate up-front GP fees

France is set to phase out up-front fees for GP visits, the country’s Health Minister said on Monday, with poorer families set to pay nothing up front by as early as the end of next year.

Published: 23 September 2013 10:13 CEST
France set to eliminate up-front GP fees
France will phase out up-front fees for GP visits by 2017, Health Minister Marisol Touraine said on Monday. Photo: Thiery Zoccolan/AFP

By 2017, France is set to entirely phase out up-front fees for GP consultations, French Health Minister Marisol Touraine announced on Monday.

“Between now and 2017, when you go to see your doctor, you’ll no longer have to pay the cost of the consultation up front,” she said in an interview with French daily Libération.

“And starting from the end of next year, insurers will directly pay the medical expenses of families with modest incomes,” Touraine added.

That’s in contrast to the current situation in France, where only those covered by CMU-C (universal health coverage) or AME (State medical aid) can avoid up-front fees for visiting their GP or buying medicine at the pharmacy.

SEE ALSO: Patients in France being sent for 'pointless tests'

Under the ‘tiers payant’ scheme, GPs and pharmacists are not paid up front by a sick person, but rather by the insurer – whether public or private.

Touraine’s announcement on Monday will mean that by 2017, all users will be able to avoid GP fees, even if they don’t have a Carte Vitale – France’s national health insurance card.

As part of the government’s overall health strategy, Touraine also unveiled a plan to install some 300 multi-disciplinary health centres to serve areas of France where there is a lack of medical cover.

“Medical deserts,” as they are known in France, are parts of the country where doctor-patient ratios are significantly lower than average, often due to a slow local economy or aging population.

To entice young medical professionals to live and work in such areas, Touraine announced a significant subsidy: “We’re assuring [such doctors] a guaranteed monthly income of €3,600,” she told Libération.

Touraine said 200 local doctors will be in place by the end of the year.

The health minister also said the goverment wants to change the system of patient records so that it will become easier for health professionals to exchange information, which would be of most benefit to the elderly and those suffering from chronic disease.

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HEALTH

Why dental care could cost you more in France from October

You can expect higher dental costs in France from October 1st, unless you have private top-up health insurance. Here's why.

Published: 29 September 2023 13:35 CEST
Why dental care could cost you more in France from October

If you are receiving dental care with a public sector, or conventionné, dentist in France, you are currently eligible to have up to 70 percent of fees reimbursed by the French social security system (Assurance maladie). To benefit from this, you will need to be registered in the system, which is best done by acquiring a carte vitale. 

READ MORE: Healthcare in France: The essential French vocabulary you’ll need if you’re ill

But from October 1st, only around 60 percent of these fees will be reimbursed by the Assurance maladie – a move that the government hopes will save €500 million each year to help a heavily indebted health system. 

If you have a mutuelle (private health insurance), then the rest of the cost (or a large portion of it) will likely be covered by them, although it’s always worth checking in advance.

If you don’t have a mutuelle, you will have to make up the rest of the cost yourself. According to the consumer association, Que Choisir, some 2.5 million French people do not have private health insurance.

Analysts believe that as a result of these reforms, the cost of mutuelles will increase further – with private insurers arguing that they will have greater overheads. The average price of a mutuelle has been projected to rise by 4.7 percent by the end of the year, in part as a result of inflation.

READ MORE: Medical appointments in France to increase in price

Which dentists are covered by social security? 

When booking a dental appointment in France, it is worth looking for dentists who are conventionné. If you are booking through the Doctolib website, which we would highly recommend, you can filter your search to only show dentists with this status. 

A dentist who is conventionné secteur 1 charges the standard tariffs set by the government – for example a simple consultation will cost €23, a hygienist appointment will cost €28.92 and the removal of an adult tooth will cost €33.44.

Currently, if you are covered by social security, 70 percent of these costs will be reimbursed, but this will soon fall to 60 percent. The rest of the costs will likely be covered by a mutuelle, if you have one. 

A dentist who is conventionné secteur 2 will charge slightly more for their services – this can vary from a few euros to hundreds on euros depending on the case. There are obliged to provide this information to you before you undergo treatment.

If you are registered with the French social security system, you will be reimbursed as if you have received treatment from a secteur 1 dentist. In other words, even if you pay more for a consultation with a secteur 2 dentist, the amount of money you will receive from Assurance maladie will be the same for if you had visited a secteur 1 dentist. A good mutuelle should be able to make up the rest of the costs. 

For private, or non-conventionné secteur 3 dentists, you will not be reimbursed through the French social security system. Only a very good mutuelle will cover the entire cost of these treatments.

READ MORE What you need to know about a mutuelle  

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