The government did not take into account the threats of private clinics: their prices fell by 0.24% for 2012. Nursing students risk seeing their internships suspended.
The standoff continues between private clinics and the government. On February 28, a decree published in the Official Journal lowers prices by 0.24% for these establishments while those for hospitals remain stable. The threat to deprive nursing students of an internship has not paid off: the new tariffs will come into force from the 1er March.
The rates concerned by the decree are those used by the Health Insurance when it transfers money to health establishments according to the acts performed. Each year, the government sets their amount and can choose to increase or decrease them.
If the Ministry of Health decided to reduce the 2014 prices for private clinics and hospitals, it is because of the Competitiveness Tax Credit (CICE). Indeed, these establishments benefit from it, recalls the ministry in a press release, which is not the case of public hospitals. Thanks to this credit, private structures are exempt from charges up to 140 million euros. A tax advantage that the government compensates with lower prices, which is not to the liking of clinics. Direct consequence of the publication of these tariffs in the Official Journal: from 1er March, the clinics will no longer welcome internship students, applying their threats.
The Ministry of Health has called the private establishments to order. He mentions the “significant effort” that has been made to these structures: 1.7 billion euros in additional credits are allocated to them for 2014. The purpose of this campaign is to straighten out the public accounts. This is the second year in a row that these prices have been reduced. In 2013, those of private clinics had fallen by 0.21% but those of hospitals had also fallen by 0.84%.
.
