Convention negotiations should have ended on July 21. But the liberal unions are still claiming 25 euros immediately for general practitioners.
The last round of treaty negotiations ended in failure. The liberal doctors’ unions have failed to reach an agreement with the Health Insurance on the new medical convention supposed to come into force this year. And while the tariff discussions continue, practitioners are expressing their fed up.
In a press release published this Friday, the CSMF (1) writes that the text of the proposed conventional negotiations is “ten years late”. Admittedly, she recognizes that for 3 days, there has been some progress, “some plasters put here and there to prevent the system from collapsing”.
Among these positive points, the first union of liberal doctors is pleased that the National Health Insurance Fund (CNAM) has retained the idea of implementing consultations at 4 levels (i.e. being paid according to content of acts and our know-how). “A first victory”, according to the CSMF.
The consultation at 25 euros immediately
However, there are other hard points for the CSMF which prevent it from going towards a conventional signature. She cites for example the basic consultation of the general practitioner that Jean-Paul Ortiz, president of the organization, claims “immediately and without waiting for April 2018 for all doctors regardless of the sector of practice”.
Its other demands are a controlled tariff practice option for all liberal doctors, and no tariff reduction whatever the specialty. “The General Assembly next Saturday will decide, but obviously, between a deleterious health law and conventional negotiation without ambition, the signing (of the future medical convention) is becoming more and more uncertain! », Concludes the CSMF.
Same story from Jean-Paul Hamon, president of the Federation of Doctors of France (FMF). He writes for his part that a lot of things have been forgotten in the text proposed by the CNAM. He particularly regrets the low budget of the structure package, intended to finance the equipment and organization of practices. “It does not allow the hiring of medical personnel or to work in correct conditions to welcome patients”. Jean-Paul Hamon ends with these words: “The limits of the mandate given to Nicolas Revel (director general of the CNAM) do not allow him to carry out the reform that the country needs to get out of the deficit”.
Next meeting July 27
Health insurance and the liberal doctors’ unions will finally meet next Wednesday July 27 at 2:30 p.m. for a last meeting, that of the last chance to reach a majority agreement.
As a reminder, the medical unions and Health Insurance really have until August 26 to agree on a text. If they do not succeed, other rules of the game are in order. Author of the book “From trade unionism to convention, the history of a long river not so quiet”, Dr Patrick Carlioz explained that “at least three signatures will be needed for a new medical convention to come into force” . “If this is not the case, it is a minimum arbitration rule which will emerge”, he specified.
The arbitrator, who is none other than the president of the High Council for the Family, Bertrand Fragonard, will then fix by decree the new relations between the Health Insurance and the liberal doctors so that the patients continue to be reimbursed. The worst option for all the unions at the table.
(1) Confederation of French Medical Syndicates
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