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France to reinstate unvaccinated healthcare workers

France's health minister said on Sunday that healthcare workers who are not vaccinated against Covid-19 would be able to return to work starting mid-May.

Published: 2 May 2023 09:52 CEST

France to reinstate unvaccinated healthcare workers

A placard reads "3rd dose mandatory. No thanks!" during a protest against the health pass and Covid-19 vaccines in front of Nantes hospital in 2022. (Photo by DAMIEN MEYER / AFP)

France’s Minister of Health, François Braun, announced on Sunday that non-vaccinated healthcare workers and caregivers (les soignants) would be able to return to work starting mid-May.

Braun told the local newspaper in Seine-et-Marne, Le Pays Briard, that “the discussions have taken place, and the plans are ready” for the reintegration of non-vaccinated workers. He told the French newspaper that he would sign the decree “at the beginning of next week”, with implementation to be followed in mid-May.

The suspension of healthcare workers who were not vaccinated against Covid-19 has been in effect since autumn 2021. However, in recent weeks, French health authorities, like the Haute Autorité de santé (HAS), had begun recommending that the vaccine obligation be lifted.

READ MORE: France launches next Covid vaccine booster campaign

On March 30th, the HAS reviewed its previous recommendations and shifted course, advising that vaccination against Covid-19 instead be “strongly recommended” rather than required.

The body also specified that “lifting a vaccination obligation for professionals does not call into question the benefits of being vaccinated”.

The new ruling will impact several thousand healthcare workers who refused to comply with Covid-19 vaccination requirements in 2021. This led to about 4,000 healthcare professionals being suspended, representing about 0.3 percent of the total hospital staff in the country.

The compulsory vaccination of healthcare workers will be the last of the Covid-related rules to be relaxed or scrapped after requirements for a vaccine pass or health pass and compulsory mask rules were dropped in 2022.

Nevertheless, vaccine recommendations remain, particularly for those in high-risk groups. In April, the French health ministry said that new Covid vaccine boosters would be available to vulnerable people, with the vaccine campaign primarily aimed at residents in EHPAD care homes.

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The different ways you can make a doctor's appointment in France

You do not need a carte vitale to book a doctor’s appointment in France – anyone who needs medical help while in the country is entitled to it, but you may not be entitled to any reimbursement if you are not part of the social security system.

Booking a GP’s appointment can be as simple as phoning up your friendly neighbourhood GP, or using an online service such as Doctolib.

It helps a lot, if you have a médecin traitant – an attending GP, who adds you (and your family, if they can) to their list of patients.

READ ALSO Explained: How to register with a doctor in France

It is not always easy to find one. Some parts of the country are short of GPs, which means doctors’ lists can fill up very quickly. But it is important that anyone who lives in France is registered with a named GP, especially if they have a carte vitale.

As well as being the main point of contact between patients and the medical profession in all its guises, it is financially responsible to be registered with a GP in France.

Reimbursement on consultations is typically 70 percent through the French healthcare system, but just 30 percent for anyone without a declared doctor. Meanwhile, top-up mutuelle health insurance companies usually require you to declare a médecin traitant and if you don’t, you may not be able to receive reimbursements on certain treatments.

Bear in mind, it is your responsibility to register with a local médecin traitant. But, even after you have done so, you can still make an appointment with any doctor, anywhere in France, and arrange specialist treatment, if you need it.

READ ALSO 5 things to know about visiting a doctor in France

How do you go about making a GP appointment in France?

There are several options.

Some health centres – more often in larger towns and cities – operate a walk-in policy. But expect waits to be lengthy. Do not, however, assume that your GP operates a system like this.

You can phone for an appointment. This is another very common method. Your GP will have their own system for making appointments – which may even include something that looks, to the uninitiated, very much like a casual walk-in policy.

Some may have an assistant to deal with booking appointments and other administration. Others may deal with appointments themselves, and may – for example – operate some sort of triage system based on voice messages from patients.

What about online booking systems?

And many practitioners are now attached to websites, such as Doctolib. As of 2023, about half of all GP appointments in France were made using Doctolib.

READ ALSO How to use: French medical website Doctolib

Be aware that other online booking systems are available. Doctolib is one of the best known, but your GP may be attached to another system, like the health ministry approved site ‘LeMedecin.Fr’.

This website also has a feature where you can take an immediate online consultation with whatever doctor is available at that moment. By clicking ‘Consultez en vidéo maintenant’ you will be connected to the next doctor who is free. This option may involve an additional charge between €5-10 on top of the price of the consultation, and you will be expected to pay when booking.

If you have any trouble with either of these websites, you can go through the list of registered generalists per département on the ‘Ameli’ website. If you use this option, you will need to call the doctor to see if they are open or available for appointments.

In terms of wait times, online systems have helped to significantly reduce the delay between booking and getting an appointment.

According to a 2023 study by Doctolib, about half of all GP appointments were available within three days from the time of booking on their platform.

Similarly, you can use online platforms to check the medical professional’s qualifications and languages spoken, as well as filter based on the doctor’s English abilities. However, this should be taken with a grain of salt because not every medical professional with English listed on their Doctolib page speaks fluent English.

An increasing number of doctorsoffer video consultations, known as télémédecine in France. This allows professionals – particularly those in more rural areas – to diagnose less serious conditions remotely. This type of consultation is usually only available from those medical practices that are attached to online booking systems.

Some pharmacies have also begun offering walk-in télémedicine consults, using ‘Medadom’ machines. More information here.

What about specialists?

In France, you book your own consultations with specialists, even if you are referred by a doctor (your GP may offer a recommendation, but won’t always). The good news is that many specialists do use online booking services. Those that do not usually have assistants to take care of the appointments.

READ ALSO: Urgent care: How to get non-emergency medical treatment in France

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