Is health really priceless? The annual budget that the French devote to their care has increased from 715 euros in 2018, to 1249 euros in 2023, an increase of 534 euros on average according to a study carried out by CSA Research for Cofidis, published on April 12.
This overload in the health budget impacts the portfolio of the French, despite the reimbursements made by social security and mutual insurance, because the rest to pay (i.e. the amount remaining to be paid after reimbursements) is also increasing . Today, it is estimated at 288 euros per year, or 56 euros more than five years ago.
4 tips that the French use to reduce their health expenses
This increase leads French people to put in place strategies to pay less. According to the study, 44% of respondents seek to reduce their health expenses using these tips:
- Be careful not to repurchase a drug that they already have at home (60%)
- Make an appointment only with doctors / specialists approved in sector 1(50%)
- Ask to be prescribed only generic or reimbursed drugs (50%)
- Compare prices from one pharmacy to another (30 %)
An increase in the health budget that has consequences
Unsurprisingly, this study confirms that the health costs where the out-of-pocket cost is the highest are dental (76%) and optical (74%). These two categories of care are also those which the French most often give up.
The increase in the health budget, in addition to the difficulties linked to medical desertification, led a quarter of the people questioned to give up treatment, a third of them being aged 18-24.
Among neglected care, dental care comes first for 52% of respondents.
“We are seeing a significant increase in health spending, signed both by the priority given by the French to health but also by the impact of inflation”, underline Mathieu Escarpit, Marketing Director at Cofidis.
Sources: The annual budget for health costs has risen sharply for 5 years (+75%)
The French health care costs study was carried out by CSA Research for Cofidis with a sample of 1,004 French people, representative of the French population aged 18 and over. Self-administered sample online from March 14 to 20, 2023, made up according to the quota method on the following criteria: sex, age, profession, region of residence and category of agglomeration.
