French Health System
When you are considering buying a house in France, healthcare may well be one of the attractions of the move. France has a healthcare system that is considered one of the best in the world.
Despite being expensive to maintain - the deficit is currently round about 6 billion Euros - and under constant funding pressure, the French healthcare system offers a wide choice of general practitioners and healthcare specialists. For those who have experience of the health system in France and in the UK, the contrast in standards can be startling.
The French healthcare system is funded by the working population. French employees pay about 20 per cent of their gross salary - the self-employed pay even more - deducted at source, to fund the social security system, known as Sécurité sociale. A significant proportion of this money goes towards public healthcare, to which every legal resident of France has access under the law of universal coverage called la Couverture maladie universelle.
Something to remember when considering a Villa For Sale in France
*** In the past all EU expats arriving in France were eligible to join the French healthcare system. However, this changed in November 2007, and now anyone arriving, and who are not planning to work, are officially retired, or in possession of documents which mean their healthcare costs are covered by the government of their original country, will not be allowed to join the system until they reach state retirement age or have lived in France for five years. Until then, they have to hold private health insurance.
When a person subscribes to Sécurité sociale, part of the cost of their medical treatment is covered by the state. However, regardless of cover anyone in France can consult a doctor or specialist. Similarly, everyone has the right to emergency hospital treatment, although for those who subscribe to Sécurité sociale, the cost is partly reimbursed.
To compare the NHS and private sector in the UK with the same in France is akin to comparing apples with oranges. There is no great difference in the quality of care between private and public hospitals in France, and there is not necessarily any great difference in price. Being treated in private clinics in France does not mean avoiding waiting lists for the simple reason that, with a few specific exceptions, waiting lists such as those in the UK do not exist. And going private does not mean you will have to foot the entire bill.
Unlike in the UK, in France treatment, whether private or public, is not free at the point of delivery. Even if you subscribe to the Sécurité sociale, on seeing a doctor or specialist (specialiste) you first pay the full bill (tarif) and are then reimbursed about 10 days later. Generally speaking, Sécurité sociale refunds 70 per cent of the cost of a visit to a médecin traitant (a GP or family doctor) and most specialists.
When you affiliate to the system you will receive your carte vitale (green card) which you must take with you whenever you visit a doctor, specialist or hospital, and when you pick up prescribed medicines.
The health system is currently undergoing the most substantial changes to the way it works since it began 60 years ago in 1947. This makes the situation ever changing, and increasingly complex.
Many people from the UK have put French healthcare as a high prioprity when deciding to buy a property in France.
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