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Carte vitale: Five surprising things available on your French health insurance

Some of the treatments available to you with the basic health insurance you are entitled to with your carte vitale in France are slightly more surprising than others. Here's a look at some of them.

Published: 23 May 2019 13:23 CEST
Carte vitale: Five surprising things available on your French health insurance
Spa treatments are reimbursed by the French health service under certain circumstances. Photo: AFP
Working out what your carte vitale entitles you to within the French health service can be a complicated business. 
 
After taking a look at what you can claim back from the French state with your carte vitale if you have the basic cover afforded by the card, with no top-up insurance, in terms of general healthcare, and how much dental and eye appointments will cost you, this time we're focusing on the more unusual treatments you have access to under the French health system. 
 
Here are a few of them. 
 
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Carte vitale: What your French health insurance card entitles you toPhoto: AFP

Spa treatments
 
Yes, you read that correctly… but of course the catch is that you need to have a prescription from a doctor stating that you need a cure thermal (in French) for medical reasons. 
 
You'll also need to request your reimbursement before having your treatment to find out how much the French State is willing to reimburse you for it and naturally the reimbursement varies according to your resources and the condition you are treating.
 
To be reimbursed, you must be suffering from a condition that falls into one of 12 categories listed by the health service, which includes things such as digestive disorders, skin conditions, gynecological issues and rheumatism. 
 
So it might not be that easy to get your hands on a free massage, after all.

Condoms

The French government announced back in November that it would take the rare step of reimbursing prescription-bought condoms to combat the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.
 
This measure, which covers French-made Eden condoms obtained on prescription from a doctor or midwife, is yet to come into effect but is expected to do so soon. 
 
The idea would be that the State covers 60 percent of the cost of the condoms, hoping that top-up health insurance providers would cover the remainder.
 
Photo: AFP
 
Produced by Majorelle laboratories and sold only in pharmacies, Eden condoms cost a fraction of leading brands such as Durex or Manix at €2.60 euros for a box of 12.
 
They are the first to be approved for reimbursement by France's national health authority, one of the few in Europe to do so.
 
Agnes Buzyn, the health minister who is a trained doctor, sounded the alarm over the risk of HIV transmission among condom-averse young people.
 
Around 6,000 new cases of HIV infection were diagnosed in 2016 – down five percent since 2013 – taking the number of people living with the virus in France to over 172,000.
 
Currently condoms are available for free in Family Planning Centres. Find your nearest here.
 
Nicotine substitutes
 
There's also some good news for any smokers who want to quit out there. 
 
Since January 1st 2019, French health insurance has reimbursed nicotine substitutes, such as lozenges and patches, by 65 percent. Previously it was subject to a €150 cap but that is no longer the case.
 
You can consult the full list of nicotine substitutes reimbursed by the French health service, including Nicorette, here. 
 
Studies have shown that nicotine substitutes are very effective in helping you stop smoking, increasing your chances of quitting from 50 percent to 70 percent, according to the French health insurance site Ameli,fr.
 
Smoking on the rise in France despite rollout of plain packaging
Photo: AFP
 
Homeopathy
 
Homeopathic medicine is a big part of French life. 
 
All pharmacies sell homeopathic products, and the pharmacists can generally always advise on alternative treatments.
 
However this could all be about to change. 
 
While the French health service currently reimburses 30 percent of the cost of homeopathic medicines, a report by health authority La Haute Autorité de Santé (HAS) released a report last week stating that this policy should be scrapped. 
 
This is down to the fact that it provides an “insufficient medical service”, according to the health authority based on a study of 1,200 homeopathic medicines. 

 
Breast implant removal
 
There have been a number of cases of incidents involving breast implants filled with silicone gel made by the company Poly Implant Prothèse and in some cases the French health service will reimburse the cost of the complications. 
 
This is usually for cases in which the implant has ruptured. 
 
In France, around 30,000 women have had this kind of breast implant, both as reconstructive surgery after suffering illnesses such as breast cancer, for example, as well as for cosmetic surgery.
 
The French health service may cover a certain amount of the cost whatever the initial reason for the surgery. 
 
If you have this kind of implant, the health service recommends discussing your options with your doctor.  

 
For the full information on all of these treatments and other issues concerning French healthcare, visit Ameli.fr. 

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HEALTH

Danish parties agree to raise abortion limit to 18 weeks

Denmark's government has struck a deal with four other parties to raise the point in a pregnancy from which a foetus can be aborted from 12 weeks to 18 weeks, in the first big change to Danish abortion law in 50 years.

Published: 3 May 2024 08:06 CEST
Danish parties agree to raise abortion limit to 18 weeks

The government struck the deal with the Socialist Left Party, the Red Green Alliance, the Social Liberal Party and the Alternative party, last week with the formal announcement made on Monday  

“In terms of health, there is no evidence for the current week limit, nor is there anything to suggest that there will be significantly more or later abortions by moving the week limit,” Sophie Løhde, Denmark’s Minister of the Interior and Health, said in a press release announcing the deal.

The move follows the recommendations of Denmark’s Ethics Council, which in September 2023 proposed raising the term limit, pointing out that Denmark had one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Western Europe. 

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Under the deal, the seven parties, together with the Liberal Alliance and the Conservatives, have also entered into an agreement to replace the five regional abortion bodies with a new national abortion board, which will be based in Aarhus. 

From July 1st, 2025, this new board will be able to grant permission for abortions after the 18th week of pregnancy if there are special considerations to take into account. 

The parties have also agreed to grant 15-17-year-olds the right to have an abortion without parental consent or permission from the abortion board.

Marie Bjerre, Denmark’s minister for Digitalization and Equality, said in the press release that this followed logically from the age of sexual consent, which is 15 years old in Denmark. 

“Choosing whether to have an abortion is a difficult situation, and I hope that young women would get the support of their parents. But if there is disagreement, it must ultimately be the young woman’s own decision whether she wants to be a mother,” she said. 

The bill will be tabled in parliament over the coming year with the changes then coming into force on June 1st, 2025.

The right to free abortion was introduced in Denmark in 1973. 

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