Lhe announcements by the President of the Republic on the end of life show a project far removed from the needs of patients and the reality of caregivers, with, in perspective, serious consequences on the care relationship and on our support model. This project will require more detailed comments from caregivers, who were never involved in its development.
In the immediate future, we can only be dismayed by the lack of ambition displayed regarding the development of palliative care. The ambitious ten-year strategy which was to put an end to the unbearable inequalities in access to dignified support is sent out in a few kind words. As if it were relegated to the rank of alibi for induced death, which could become for many the only accessible solution to respond to suffering.
The President of the Republic announces an additional 1 billion euros invested over ten years, to be compared to the 1.6 billion euros currently allocated. The presidential ambition for palliative care therefore boils down to a 6% increase in their annual budget, or 1.50 euros more per French person per year…
Unworthy and unacceptable conditions
“When it comes to guaranteeing effective and universal access to support care at the end of life, the State has an obligation to achieve results. » Such was the promise of the President of the Republic and its government for palliative care, made during the submission of the report of the citizens’ convention on the end of life, in 2023. The imperative need and the urgency to finally fulfill the commitment of the 1999 law for access to palliative care everywhere and for all have been unanimously confirmed by all the reports, consultations, opinions or conventions of recent months. Too many of our fellow citizens today end their lives in undignified and unacceptable conditions which can lead them to say that it would be better to die than to suffer, when they could be relieved.
The latest report from the Court of Auditors came as a clear reminder that universal access to palliative care is far from being achieved, with needs that “would only be covered up to 50%”. The wise people of Rue Cambon also estimate that currently, 60% of people at the end of their lives require palliative care, or more than 360,000 people per year. [en 2023, le total des décès en France s’élève à 628 266]. So around 500 of them die every day (yes, every day) without having had access to the care and relief they would have needed. And due to the aging of the population, this need will increase by 4,000 people per year until 2046, an increase of 23% over just over twenty years.
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