Caregivers who died on the front lines of the Covid-19 epidemic now benefit from the distinction
“Death for the service of the Republic”
, like that which exists for the police or the military.
The measure, announced in the spring of 2021, was announced in the Official Journal on Saturday.
It is the third mention that exists to date, after
"died for France"
, reserved for soldiers who died in combat, and
"died for the service of the nation",
which concerns personnel carrying out security missions.
Read alsoAt least 3,000 caregivers dead from Covid-19 worldwide
In all, 19 healthcare professionals died from Covid-19 between March 1 and mid-December 2020, the date of the last reported death.
According to Public Health France, these are 5 doctors, 5 nursing auxiliaries, 1 nurse, 2 health professionals classified as “other” and 6 non-medical professionals.
Health professionals and public officials who died between January 1, 2020 and July 31, 2022 may be affected by the mention, according to the decree published in the official journal on Saturday.
The distinction will allow the children of the deceased to benefit from the status of "ward of the nation", and to obtain easier access to national education scholarships, material and moral protection from the State until their 21 years and a more favorable inheritance tax regime.
“I would like us to give our recognition a solid anchor in the law, that we grant public officials who died in exceptional circumstances in the service of the common good a specific status, that of death for the service of the Republic, which allows to their sons, their daughters to become wards of the Republic” and thus benefit from “material and moral support to help them recover”
, announced the President of the Republic in a video posted on Twitter.
