The revelations of a book evoking malfunctions in private nursing homes of the Orpea group are “absolutely revolting” and call for sanctions of “the greatest severity (…) if the facts are proven”, estimated Wednesday the spokesman of the Gabriel Attal government.
“Our elders deserve respect, they deserve the best, and it is out of the question that such acts can be tolerated in our country,” he added after the Council of Ministers.
“The revelations made in this book are absolutely revolting, your stomach is knotted reading such things, and if these facts are proven, they must obviously be sanctioned with the greatest severity”, he insisted.
Meeting with the general manager of Ehpad Orpea
Gabriel Attal specified that the Minister Delegate for the Autonomy of the Elderly Brigitte Bourguignon would meet “as soon as possible” the Director General of Orpea Jean-Christophe Romersi, “at the request of the Minister of Health Olivier Véran”.
The government also asked the Ile-de-France Regional Health Agency for its “last unannounced control report on this establishment and the follow-up that had been given”, data which dates back to the “year 2018” according to Gabriel Attal.
“Do not bring shame on an entire profession”
In a book-investigation published on Monday, the independent journalist Victor Castanet describes a system where hygiene care, medical care, and even residents’ meals are “rationed” to improve the profitability of the group of private nursing homes, and this while stays are charged at full price. The journalist revealed on Wednesday morning that he had received pressure and threats: he was notably offered the sum of 15 million euros to buy his silence.
The publication has plunged the title Orpea, which has lost 38.10% on the stock market since the start of the week.
After two years of pandemic which have put a strain on all health personnel, the government spokesperson also considered that the facts related by the book, if true, “should not bring shame on a whole profession that works with the utmost seriousness”.