Liberal health professionals take to the streets this Tuesday against imposed savings

Initiated by 13 trade union organizations united within the #SoignantsTrahis collective, this interprofessional protest movement will begin at 11 a.m. with a rally on the Place des Invalides.

The procession will set off towards the Ministry of Health, with an earlier departure time of around 1 p.m. due to the crushing heatwave that has been raging in France for several days, the peak of which is expected on Tuesday and Wednesday. Paris will also be placed on red alert.

"We will have misters and water fountains, and we are confident that people will be able to bring water bottles and flasks," Sébastien Guérard, a physiotherapist and president of the Liberal Health Association, told AFP. The government's savings plan includes postponing fee increases initially scheduled for July 1, 2025, for certain specialists until January 1, 2026.

The inter-union sees this as "an open disregard for the conventional system and agreements", and the liberal health workers point out that these measures are being taken in response to an economic situation for which they are not responsible.

"A responsible health policy cannot be based sustainably on intentions that are not followed up," criticizes the National Council of the Order of Physiotherapists, which reports "an increasing number of removals from the register due to physiotherapists leaving the country, primarily to Switzerland and Quebec."

Reduction in discounts on generic drugs

Another source of anger among pharmacy unions is the government's plan to lower the ceiling on commercial discounts granted by manufacturers to pharmacies on generic drugs to between 20 and 25%.

Currently, discounts are capped at a maximum of 40% of the generic price. Since these discounts are reported to the health insurance system, the government can see which manufacturers have granted discounts and then request price reductions.

These rebates are a component of pharmacists' remuneration, representing "a third of our margin," Guillaume Racle, economic advisor for the USPO, told AFP. He estimates the shortfall at €600 million if discounts are capped at 20%, or "€30,000 per pharmacy."

"Today, the State overpays for expensive drugs and underpays for mature drugs," summarizes this pharmacist, observing that "1% of drugs (by volume) cost 42% of the expenditure on city drugs."

The average cost of treatments assessed as providing no additional clinical benefit compared to existing treatments "has been increasing since 2021, as has their total expenditure, whereas it was decreasing in the past," acknowledges the Health Insurance in its annual report on health costs and savings.

The drop in prices resulting from the reduction in discounts will have an impact on jobs in pharmacies and risks worsening drug shortages, warn pharmacists' unions.