Yasmina Kattou (Photo credit: ALINE MORCILLO / HANS LUCAS VIA AFP)
Nearly 27 million medical appointments are missed each year. Every week, this represents 6 to 10% of patients who do not show up in the offices. A waste of time and a contribution to the congestion of health services which alert the order of doctors and question the government.
While Emmanuel Macron and the Minister of Health François Braun are traveling this Tuesday to deal with the question of medical deserts, an idea is gaining ground: that of sanctioning patients who do not show up for their medical appointment. Because indeed, nearly 27 million appointments are not honored each year. This represents 6 to 10% of patients concerned every week.
Change in law
The Academy of Medicine and the Order of Physicians have already warned about the phenomenon before because it has consequences: doctors, whatever their discipline, lose an average of two hours a week because of these rabbits posed by patients. So many hours during which they cannot receive patients who really need them. Suffering people then fall back on emergencies, which contributes to a congestion of these services in hospitals.
Today, the legislation does not allow the establishment of financial sanctions, it would first be necessary to modify the law to do so. In mid-February, senators have already worked on the issue, paving the way for a compensation mechanism for missed medical appointments and a financial penalty for dishonest patients. The device could take the form of a recovery of the sum by the health insurance fund on subsequent reimbursements, paid to the patient under other benefits, in particular suggested the Social Affairs Committee.