Alexandra Jaegy / Photo credit: LAURE BOYER / HANS LUCAS / HANS LUCAS VIA AFP
It was introduced in 2008 by Nicolas Sarkozy and has remained unchanged since. The medical deductible, which amounts to 50 cents per box of drugs, could soon double as the government, which is working on the 2024 budget, seeks to save money. Thomas Cazenave, Minister of Public Accounts, in any case confirmed this Friday on France 2 that the track was indeed under study.
But for Yassine, 43, a customer of a Parisian pharmacy, the announcement goes badly. This jobless man in fragile health falls ill regularly and has to deal with dental problems. For him, paying a deductible of 1 euro per box of medicine would be excessive. “We suffer like everyone else. It’s too expensive, but it depends for whom. For those who have money, it’s fine,” he said at the microphone of Europe 1.
“We don’t pay anything in France”
This 40-year-old would prefer the deductible to be proportional to income. On the other hand, Yvette, a 68-year-old retiree, does not share the same opinion and believes that all French people must make an effort. “We don’t pay anything in France. So, I completely agree with paying 1 euro. It seems ridiculous to me. You go to the hospital, you go out, you don’t pay anything. 1 euro is not even not the price of a coffee”, she assures.
For Carole, a pharmacist, doubling these medical deductibles would be absurd. According to her, the solution lies elsewhere. “It’s completely unfair. They would do better to tax alcohol and tobacco, which generate much more health costs than drugs. It’s something absurd,” she said.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne ruled out any increase in alcohol taxes. The government plans, however, to extend the medical franchise to other products such as dressings or crutches.