Public hospitals: “unprecedented” deficit reaches 2.4 billion euros in 2023

"The very sharp deterioration" in public hospital accounts "is explained in particular by the gradual withdrawal of exceptional support measures to deal with the health crisis," the Drees indicates in its study. The overall deficit of €2.4 billion represents 2.3% of the establishments' revenue, "a proportion unprecedented since 2005, the starting point of the observations," it adds.

On the debt side, the Ségur de la santé and its measures to restore financial capacity continued to have an impact, with debt decreasing to 45% of permanent capital.

But "the share of over-indebted establishments is rising again, without returning to its pre-crisis level (36% in 2023 after 34% in 2022 and 41% in 2019)," the experts note.

The DREES accounts serve as a benchmark but are always published with a certain delay. For 2024, the French Hospital Federation predicts a further increase in the public hospital deficit, which would reach €3.4 billion.