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HEALTH

Calendar: Which Covid restrictions on sports are lifted when in France?

As France began to gradually ease its partial lockdown on Monday, some rules restricting physical activities disappeared. But gyms and sports stadiums have to wait a bit longer before welcoming visitors back.

Published: 3 May 2021 13:19 CEST
Calendar: Which Covid restrictions on sports are lifted when in France?
The dreaded 1km-limit never made a comeback during the third lockdown in France imposed this spring, and joggers have been able to run freely within a 10km-limit from their home. Photo: Ludovic MARIN / AFP

The phased easing of partial lockdown measures in France offered hope for gyms and sports clubs, which had to shut down last autumn as part of restrictive measures aimed at reducing the country’s rising Covid-19 rates.

“The light at the end of the tunnel is approaching,” the French sports minister, Roxana Maracineaunu, said in a tweet on Sunday, where she laid out which limits on exercise would disappear the following day.

President Emmanuel Macron presented the plan to reopen the country last week. It will be a gradual process containing four stages, with the option to delay if the health situation deteriorates. 

IN DETAIL: France’s calendar for reopening after lockdown

These are the dates to look out for in relation to sports and leisure activities:

Phase 1: May 3rd

Whereas during the first and second lockdowns in 2020, runners, cyclists and other sports enthusiasts had to contain their practice within 1 kilometre of their home, the partial lockdown in April 2021 allowed free movement up to 10 kilometres when practising individual sports (30 kilometres for club sports).

The government also let outdoor group sports outside go ahead, as long as participants respected social distancing and other health rules. Practising yoga in groups in the park or playing tennis or golf therefore remained possible throughout the partial lockdown in April.

On May 3rd the 10 kilometre-limit on non-essential outings disappeared, effectively ending geographical restrictions on individual sporting activities during daytime.

The nighttime curfew remained in place. All sporting activities were still be banned between 7pm and 6am (except walking the dog or other pets, within 1km of home).

In schools, sport activities resumed both indoors and outdoors, following a rescheduled holiday period and additional long distance-schooling for some groups enforced to reduce spread of the virus.

Rules on outdoor practices of groups sports remained unchanged. The rules, updated on April 8th, allowed for groups of up to six people participating at the same time, while keeping a 2 metre-distance between themselves. This rules out contact sports but would allow, for example, pétanque as long as people are sufficiently distanced.

Phase 2: May 19th 

If the health situation permits, the nighttime curfew will be pushed back to 9pm (from 7pm currently), which means it will be possible to go for a run, walk, bike ride or other until that time.

Sports stadiums will be allowed to reopen, though under strict health rules and with limits on participants (800 for open-air stadiums and 1,000 for covered ones).

Gyms and swimming pools can also reopen to children – at present under 18s can only access gyms and pools as part of a school sports lesson or organised school outing. They will remain closed for adults, with the exception of those who have been medically prescribed exercise.

Phase 3: June 9th 

If the health situation allows, the curfew will be postponed to 11pm.

Gyms will be able to reopen for adults following eight months of closures, although with limits on the number of people allowed at the same time and with strict health protocols in place. It might be done on a local basis if case numbers remain high in certain areas.

Swimming pools can also reopen to the general public on this date, again with extra health rules and restrictions on user numbers in place.

In his interview last week, President Macron said the coming pass sanitaire (health pass), which will be a proof of vaccine or a recent negative Covid test, was unlikely to become a requirement to enter establishments that regularly receive the public, such as bars, restaurants and cinemas, but also gyms.

Full details on France’s plans for a health pass HERE.

Contact sports will be allowed, which includes team sports such as rugby and football (although judging by the scenes in parks, most people seem unaware that these sports were banned for the general public).

Cultural or sporting events with up to 5,000 people will be allowed, but on the condition that participants provide a health pass proving that recently tested negative for Covid-19 or have been vaccinated for the virus.

Phase 4: June 30th

The curfew ends.

The limits on establishments receiving public – such as gyms – will disappear, but this depends on the health situation at that time and the government may decide to do this on a local basis.

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HEALTH

REVEALED: How long does it take to get a doctor’s appointment in France?

When it comes to seeing a doctor in France, you can wait as little as three days to as long as 42 to get an appointment, according to new data. But waiting times depend heavily on the different specialties and where you live.

Published: 23 April 2024 10:07 CEST
REVEALED: How long does it take to get a doctor's appointment in France?

In France, half of all GP appointments are available within three days from the time of booking, according to a study carried out by French booking website Doctolib, using data from its platform.

But patients have to wait longer to see specialist doctors, Docotlib reveals.

Half of all appointments with pediatricians are available in less than a week.

This is followed by dentists and midwives, with an average period of 11 days before the first available appointment. Next, there were psychiatrists (16 days), gynecologists (22 days), and ophthalmologists (25 days).

The Doctolib site allows patients in France to book the next available appointments with most GPs and other medical specialists via its easy to use booking platform.

READ MORE: How to use: French medical website Doctolib

As for the specialties where patients have to wait the longest to see a doctor – dermatologists were second to last – with the average person waiting 36 days. The longest waits were to see cardiologists with patients often having to wait at least 42 days for an appointment.

The medical platform said there was an explanation for the significant differences in wait times: “Dermatology typically requires less urgent care, while most emergencies related to cardiology are referred to the hospital.”

As for physiotherapists, the only para-medical profession looked into within the study, half of all appointments were available within less than six days.

What about video consultations?

The study also looked at the use of the ‘tele-consultation’ (video appointments) tool, and it found that opting for this can significantly speed up appointment wait times.

When using the tele-consultation option, the median wait times for GP and pediatrician appointments dropped to just one day. For midwives, it went down to two days, and then four days for gynecologists, seven days for cardiologists, eight days for dermatologists, and 17 days for psychiatrists.

What about regional disparities?

According to OECD data, France has 32 doctors for every 10,000 people, slightly below the OECD average of 37.

However, they are not equally distributed – about a third of France is considered to be a ‘medical desert’, meaning there is a shortage of doctors . It’s usually used to mean places that have a shortage of GPs or family doctors, which can make it hard for patients to find a regular doctor to register with.

READ MORE: MAP: Where in France has the best access to healthcare?

The Docotlib study noted that their findings do not reveal the disparities between France’s départements, and even within départements themselves.

“About 15 départements across France were found to be in a particularly challenging position regarding wait times in comparison to the rest of the country.

“[These areas] saw median waiting times at least twice as long as the average for at least three of the different specialties,” Doctolib noted.

These départements with the longest wait times were Gers, Saône-et-Loire, Nièvre and Territoire de Belfort, Loiret, Cher, Deux-Sèvres, Ardèche, Eure, Calvados, Manche, Loire-Atlantique and Côtes d’Armor, Pas-de-Calais.

Have things got better or worse?

In terms of whether the situation has improved in recent years, well the data shows there has not been much of change.

Between 2021 and 2023, “the median appointment wait times for different specialties either only slightly changed or did not change at all, which is an encouraging sign given the increase in demand for post-Covid care and the decline in the number of doctors available,” Doctolib wrote.

Doctolib carried out the study using data from appointments made using its platform. It is important to note that medical appointments in France can be secured a number of different ways, with other websites available, as well as the possibility to request appointments in person or on the phone.

As a result, GP consultations made via Doctolib accounted for a little under half of the total GP visits in France.

The platform recorded 87.6 million GP visits in 2023 via its website, out of more than 200 million total GP consultations in France.

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