The medical excess, a sum deducted from reimbursements made by Health Insurance, doubles for medicines, medical transport as well as for consultations and medical procedures.
- Medical deductibles will double from the end of March.
- This concerns boxes of medicines, medical procedures, medical transport and biology exams.
- The ceiling remains at 50 euros deductible per year.
Emmanuel Macron announced it during his press conference on January 16: medical deductibles will increase. Monday January 22, the Ministry of Health specified the acts concerned and the deadline for application. “The new amounts of deductibles and fixed contributions should come into force respectively at the end of March and by the beginning of June.”indicates the ministry in a communicated. For the different procedures and medications concerned, the figure will double.
Medical franchise: what are the products and procedures concerned?
“The medical excess is a sum which is deducted from reimbursements made by your health insurance fund for medicines, paramedical procedures and medical transport.specifiesHealth Insurance. In detail, the ministry announces that the franchises for boxes of medicine and paramedical procedures will increase to 1 euro, that on medical transport to 4 euros, finally that concerning procedures and consultations carried out by a doctor, biological examinations and analyzes medical for 2 euros. “These amounts had not been revalued since their creation in 2008 and 2004.”says the Ministry of Health.
In his communicatedhe specifies that this reform is put in place to “continue 100% care in the most serious cases and at the cutting edge of research for serious illnesses”and that to achieve this objective it is necessary to promote “greater participation and responsibility of the French for everyday illnesses”. During his press conference, Emmanuel Macron declared: “To say that we are going to go from 0.50 to 1 euro per box of medicines, I don’t have the feeling that we are committing a terrible crime, but I think that it creates responsibility and that it is a good measure.“This should bring in 800 million euros.
Exceptions to the increase in medical deductibles
The Ministry of Health adds that these deductibles and fixed contributions are applicable to all policyholders, “with the exception of minors, women who benefit from maternity insurance, and beneficiaries of complementary solidarity health insurance.. This does not apply to emergency transport, medications or procedures prescribed during hospitalization. Also, the amount of deductibles cannot exceed 50 euros per year. “Patients with the highest use of care, whose deductible amounts are already at the ceiling of €50, will therefore not pay more.develops the ministry.
Medical franchise: the concern of patient associations
On the side of associations, the measure raises several concerns, including that of a renunciation of care. The day after the presidential address, Gérard Raymond, president of France asso santé, warned of the risk of a “double punishment” for the most precarious patients: “be sick and pay twice as much”in an interview with France Info. “This is not how we are going to empower patients and people who need care.”he declared.
