Social Security budget: In the National Assembly, a barrage of criticism against the increase in medical deductibles

"Scandalous" , "unacceptable" , "unfair"... It is an understatement to say that the measure affecting medical deductibles, that is to say those sums remaining to be borne by patients on boxes of medicines or medical consultations (we then speak of fixed contributions), received an avalanche of criticism from the deputies who continued the examination, on Wednesday October 29, of the draft law on financing Social Security.

From the National Rally (RN) to La France Insoumise, including elected officials from The Republicans (LR) and the Socialist Party, it took little time for members of the National Assembly's Social Affairs Committee to secure the removal of Article 18, which would have expanded the scope of franchisees. This was a preliminary step before a vote in the plenary session, scheduled to begin on Tuesday, November 4th, with the bill's examination resuming from the government's original text, as required by budgetary procedure.

As part of the €7 billion in savings promised by the government for healthcare in its 2026 budget, the doubling of co-payments, fixed fees, and their caps – currently €50 – is intended to free up €2.3 billion. This measure, which has been met with unanimous opposition from both patient representatives and healthcare professionals, was announced in July by former Prime Minister François Bayrou (December 2024-September 2025). It has been met with strong disapproval, following an initial doubling of these co-payments in 2024.

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