“Do you realize how long it takes to get a doctor's appointment?
Many of them don't even take new patients anymore, ”Noé irritates on Twitter.
“And when he is on vacation?
“, worries Bacchus, on the same network.
Since this Sunday, thousands of French people, from ordinary citizens to opposition members and doctors, have been standing up following the interview and announcement of Gabriel Attal, the Minister of Action and Public Accounts. , to want to stop the reimbursement of work stoppages obtained by teleconsultation, when it is not with his attending physician.
What did Gabriel Attal say?
The former government spokesman set fire to the powder in an interview published in the Journal du Dimanche.
"These judgments delivered by video by a doctor who is not the attending physician will no longer be reimbursed by Social Security", declared the minister, lifting the veil on one of the measures of the draft social security budget presented on Monday .
The minister justifies this delisting “in order to prevent some from chaining online consultations until they find the one who will be willing to issue them sick leave”.
“We have seen an explosion of sick leave given, by teleconsultation, by a professional who is not the attending physician.
These are nearly 100 million euros last year, ”explained the tenant of Bercy.
According to the draft social security financing bill consulted by AFP, the measure should come into force on June 1, 2023.
What is the origin of this teleconsultation authorization?
Teleconsultations of general practitioners, but also of specialists, have experienced a boom since the Covid epidemic.
To allow the French to stay at home, the government had decided that Social Security would fully support teleconsultations.
At the end of 2021, in a “context of epidemic recovery”, this provision was extended.
Then, at the beginning of the summer of 2022, François Braun, the author of a “flash mission” on emergencies and unscheduled care, who later became Minister of Health, recommended maintaining this full compensation until at the end of summer 2022.
Why does this worry workers and doctors?
If this change was at the origin of a wave of criticism, it is because "six to seven million French people do not have a doctor, for lack of space", recalls Jérôme Marty, president of the union French for free medicine.
For health professionals, this measure had been put in place to "hide the difficulties of the lack of professionals".
“Are we to understand that the government therefore undertakes to find doctors for the regions that lack them?
», smiles the health professional.
Read alsoMedical deserts: in Île-de-France, more than 63% of the population lives in the red zone
This lack of doctors, which also lengthens the time to obtain an appointment, worries the French who would like to obtain sick leave, alerting in particular about the untenable waiting period and the 48 hours given to send a work stoppage (at the CPAM and the employer).
Who is targeted?
However, the union official, Dr. Marty, sees "some good in this announcement".
"I hope it's a roundabout way of blocking the development of money booths (sic), those who only offer teleconsultation in terminals installed in supermarkets between the vegetables and the thrift store departments... This patient group is not not known to doctors and therefore this has increased the number of (sick) stops, ”he tackles, targeting companies like Tessan, Qare, Livi.
“Nature abhors a vacuum, a windfall effect for these companies.
We created low-cost medicine,” regrets Dr. Marty.
While during the presentation of the plan for the Social Security financing law, this Monday, the ministers did not return to this subject, Jérôme Marty asks the government to "define a real value for the medical act".
As for this controversial bill, he wants to be cautious: "Let's wait to have the terms of application".
As a reminder, sick leave issued by teleconsultation by the attending physician should continue to be reimbursed.
Just like those provided during an in-office consultation, even if the doctor is not the attending physician.
