How French Healthcare Compares To The US System | Americans React | Loners #54

[@duke3572]

The French system is based mainly on national solidarity and is funded by direct but also indirect taxes (VAT, alcohol and tobacco tax) so everyone contributes. However, do not forget that all this was possible thanks to workers' union struggles and strikes. The French have the reputation of making a strike often and it is not for nothing it is to defend our rights in the face of neo-liberal and capitalist attacks. Health protection, workers' protection is done every day and never stop.

[@lolleedle5515]

then you have gas company owners in america torturing everyone

[@campanalsbaptiste1360]

Thanks, i'm french and i live that, all of m'y family works and fights to have this rights, for everyone, thanks again

[@hamrite]

Strikes were not an option at start, when popular blue collar were revolting against bad working condition and misery. If you look at the several outbursts of violence, 1789, 1848, 1870 .... all these revolutions included the poor and the ripples of social movements being attended by the intellectuals and progressive politicians who wanted change. There was extreme violence during those events. It was Leon Blum after his election in 1936 that opened up the idea of vacation for the workers, real holidays. Then during the resistance movement of the 2nd world war, the CNR (Comité National de Résistance) got the Consevatives (Royalistsand Progressives to sit together and prepare social security after 1945.

[@ebm9231]

"all this was possible thanks to workers' union struggles and strikes" Yes and no. It was implemented in 1945 mainly because the government was afraid of communism and because other political parties were in favor of this system.

[@raphaelmaarek6220]

​@@ebm9231it was created by Ambroise Croizat, a communist minister.

[@olivierpuyou3621]

My second daughter was born with a heart defect, she was on vacation in the South West of France with her mother and her sister when they realized the problem which had not been visible at birth. given the seriousness of the problem playing on survival in the very short term I therefore flew at my expense but for the return a place had been reserved for me on a plane from the hopita and an escort of bikers of the police opened the road so that we could be at the Necker hospital specializing in the care of children as soon as possible. In a few days she will be 34 years old and she is the mother of two boys. It is obvious that without social security my daughter would have died and I would not be a grandfather.

[@charlesm.2604]

Prime personal experience of a system that uplifts the people.

[@windowsxp9815]

Necker is litterally since 2O years the best hospital for children and heart problem.

[@khaelamensha3624]

​@@windowsxp9815I was to comment the same thing. Necker is top notch kid hospital period

[@sew_gal7340]

In America you would have private insurance and would only have to pay 1000 for the procedure at most.

[@MrApocalyptica83]

and as Goerge Carlin said : " Its called the american dream because you have to be asleep to believe it"

[@darksideofthemood]

Hi! I'm french and work in healthcare. The waiting time depends on where you live, some places don't have THE specialist you need to see so you might have to drive a bit or the system can transfer you to said specialist for free if you can't move by yourself. Where I am, you can book an appointment and be seen WORST CASE SCENARIO in two weeks. If it's an emergency of course you'd be taken immediately. I'd also like to add that most people who are hospitilized can return home and STILL receive medical care at home from specialised nurses/doctors which assures their comfort and their health. Here i'm talking exclusively about healthcare and not plastic surgery and other "non-essential medical acts". If you have an access to social security which most people do EVEN non-citizens, even people who aren't there "legally" you won't pay a DIME because we understand that being alive is a human right and cannot be bought. Now, patients can be charged for, again, cosmetic procedures and certains non-essential services (like having massages, special food....). But that cost will absolutely not ruin them. We pay taxes for all that to work. And yeah it sucks but i prefer to pay taxes so i know EVERYONE in my country can access care no matter their background because seeing someone suffer because they can't afford treatment would send me to a dark place. Living should be free, living decently should be simple. I'm proud to work in healthcare and i'm proud to pay taxes so we're all safe.

[@anthonyguerin7659]

Tres bien dis

[@barmag8802]

French here. I live in a big city (Lyon) and I have a "family doctor". I call him at 8 am and I have an appointment for the afternoon. It cost 25 euros, reimbursed 5 days later. It's a bit longer to get an appointment with specialists, the worst cases are for dermatologists or oto-rhinos. I have no problem with dentist appointments. Generally, specialists have secretaries and if there is a patient cancelling, they call other patients and ask them if they are free to come sooner. Very convenient.

[@loners4life]

That sounds very nice!

[@teardrop-in-a-fishbowl]

German here. If you're sick, I mean sick not having an "issue", you go to your doctor next morning and get the help you need! There's no "waiting time" here in Germany and I guess also not in France. Right? And it costs 0, Zero. You only pay for medication, at most 10€ for either med (0 too 10€).

[@Frohds14]

@@teardrop-in-a-fishbowlDu wohnst auch in Fantasien. Das machen die nur bei Berufstätigen, weil die eine Krankschreibung brauchen. Inzwischen wird gefragt, ob man eine Drei-Tage-Frist hat oder nicht. Sagst du ja, kannst du drei Tage warten, bis du kommen kannst. Ist selbst bei mir als Privatpatient so. Die Hausärzte sind völlig überlastet.

[@teardrop-in-a-fishbowl]

@@Frohds14 Ich bin Rentner (EUR,58) und werde,wenn ich morgens um 8:00 in der Praxis bin, auch dran genommen. Ich habe in drei verschiedenen Bundesländern gewohnt, mehreren Städten, und hatte bis dato fünf Hausärzte. Noch nie, NIE, wurde ich nach Hause geschickt wenn ich ernsthaft krank war! Ich rede hier nur von Hausärzten und nicht Internisten, daß ist etwas vollkommen anderes. Wie alt bist du, wo wohnst du und welche persönlichen Erfahrungen hast du denn?

[@wyboz8867]

Allez Lyon !!

[@darkside6215]

I really consider myself lucky to be born and raised in France. Our system is not perfect but we live with the dream that everyone can afford to treat themselves at a reasonable price. Younger i took it for granted, as something "normal". But as I got older, I realised how rare and beautiful it is. A society that truly tries to care for its people.

[@VincentGrimm-d8l]

I agree 100%

[@maleboglia1775]

I would say that applies to europe in general: here, an american tourist WITHOUT insurance would pay less for a medical emergency than in the USA WITH insurance! And this says a lot!!!

[@loners4life]

Sadly. This is very true!

[@paolopagliaro980]

It says that the amount of taxes paid by us Europeans for that is unthinkable for Americans. I am Italian and 40% of my wage goes directly in taxes; then I have lot of other taxes to pay (for the house, garbage, a good part of my heath and electricity bills, etc etc) and, on top of that, there's a 23% tax on EVERYTHING I buy, from food to clothes. And I forgot to say that gasoline costs a little less than 2$ for each liter, meaning more or less 6.8$ per gallon (half of that is tax).

[@fabricerubio1070]

In France it will be 100% free ! 🍷🇫🇷

[@mic498]

It's not only the American tourist/foreigner would pay less, it's you would pay almost NOTHING, compared to the United States.

[@mic498]

@@paolopagliaro980 Dude, if what you say is true, your taxes are one of the highest in the world. It's not as high in other European countries.

[@pigedehekkan]

As a European it's sad to see how USAians are manipulated into believing that the every man for themselves tactic is a good thing. Here in Norway you can get an appointment the same day if it's something urgent, if not urgent usually a week or three depending what it might be. I once suspected cancer and got appointet right away. The doctor suspected the same and proscribed me to hospital for several tests the next day. Within one week I had gone thru everything and had operation to have the cancer removed. Afterwards I got chemotherapy. When the cancer was gone I was checked up regularly with MR, CT, x-ray and ultrasound and a lot of testing several times a year for 10 years. All of that costs about 350$ a year. I would much rather pay the high tax regularly and don't have to worry about some sudden medical expense. And I don't mind that I pay 3 times more in tax than many other people. Free healthcare and education should never be an issue for any country.

[@yumyummoany]

My son and his family live in France. They have twins born in France. One baby was very sick and had to be transferred to an intensive care unit in a specialist children’s hospital. 24/7 care for 10 days and a translator on call to make sure my son understood what was going on. The child was transferred in a highly specialised ambulance with specialist paramedics and a doctor. The baby is soon 4 and fit and healthy. Cost to the family ZERO! UK weather cold and wet all year round! At least we can get cheap flights to warm countries using out 20 days minimum holidays!

[@TITI.3]

I know a Serbian lady, we had a heart attack here in Paris while visiting her daughter. Everything was 100% covered by Social Security, including heart surgery and hospital where she stayed several weeks. So yes, even visitors are covered.

[@alostdecade6057]

It’s french touch

[@khaelamensha3624]

We like people enjoying our gastronomy 😂 Hope everyone is fine now

[@mic498]

Yes, every people on the French territory is covered basically, but only for the urgencies or big health problems. Like if you have a cold and want some medicine, don't expect it being free lol

[@jeefuji]

10:30 Well, that's why our motto is "Liberty, equality, fraternity", we strive for equality, we want everyone on our soil to live in dignity, and we are not afraid to have our state manage those public services since they are made to serve us, the citizens. Though recently, neo-liberalism try to privatise some parts of our social security more and more (and that's why we will be on general strikes marathon starting next week in France aha).

[@loners4life]

Interesting! Thanks for the insight 👍🏻

[@Lostouille]

​@@loners4life yes by the way rendez-vous the 7th March for a general mobilisation for the retirement age 👀

[@AmauryJacquot]

french here. getting an appointment to the doc takes < 1 week, costs about 0 to see the doc (25€ or so of which most is reimbursed). there is no "in system" docs or whatever, all docs are managed the same. Minimum wage is 11.27€ per hour, 8.92€ net per hour after social security (includes healthcare, retirement, unemployment benefits, which is 1709,28€ a month (1353,07 € net), for 35h/week. extra hours earn more. Getting blood tests basically takes the time to walk to the lab costs 0, all paid directly through the social security administration... emergency care is almost free, ambulances are free, (...) Tourists go to the hostpital, get taken care of, no problem, they get treated the same for actual medical procedures. cosmetic surgery is not covered unless if it's reconstructive surgery (say after a cancer treatment or somehting). the extra insurance is now mandatory, your company can provide you with one, or you can select whichever you want. most of those are non profit

[@Meneylas]

thanks for the clarification, honestly the delays are pretty variable for general practitionners, in Paris it's about a week, in smaller towns it's 1 to 3 days. the thing that takes a long time is specialists for example are ophtalmogists or dentists

[@emildrimbea3210]

or less then week depend of the apoiment and dr.

[@cegesh1459]

The minimum wage is way too low. oO No idea how anyone can survive on that. Aside from that is's a good system.

[@AmauryJacquot]

@@cegesh1459 the ony issue is being able to afford rent food and transportation. Indeed, it’s low, and is part of the reason a large par of france is on strike these days

[@romainviry3185]

@@Meneylas they are places in France with actual medical deserts in terms of specialists and even generalists doctors. Cities are obviously much better served to a point that this is ridiculous how many generalist doctors I have access to close to where I live. This should not be like that imo. Generalist doctors have to be pushed towards (with some incentive but not oo much) spreading their coverage in EACH and every part of France . Their lobby is too strong I'd say

[@dashbolt101s]

In France our motto is "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity" - and it's in fact what is done for our healthcare, everyone contributes to the system so that everyone can equally and freely benefit from it. Also, when you talk about 110 000/year being comfortable in France if you don't have to repay a student loan, it is actually a VERY comfortable income. To compare, the average annual income in France is 39 300 euros - so 110 000 is more than double the average income. Doctors are enjoy their life in France and everyone's happy.

[@lullhabit6292]

fun fact : I am french ((25) and I have had weird stuff hapening for both my eyes for a year now. Saw multiples specialists, many scanners, RMI, many tests. It probably cost me around 70 euros in total for at least 7 meetings and test. They finally found what I have, got a surgey planned in a week since november, it's not gonna cost me a dime. And I get anesthesia, a room + expertise. Thanks french healthcare

[@mickaels.1614]

in the usa , it would cost you 70 000 $ , and you'll have to take 10 years of debt to paid. 😂

[@mkmc94]

@@mickaels.1614 This is sad, you guys should strike or do something your gouvernement don't treat you right !

[@k.u9275]

This system is meant to take care of the society as a whole. It's not individualist. So yes, you pay taxes and assurances (health assurance is about 50 euros a month for medium rembursement) but with that, you protect all the citizens. If you're healthy you pay for nothing in return. But at least, if something bad happens, you know you are covered. Accident, cancer can happen to everyone. Generalist doctors are really easy to access. The same day you are sick. For specialist like dermatologist or ophtalmologist It's becoming complicated as there are not enough doctors and you have to wait a few months. It depends the cities. It's not perfect, for some things like dental crowns it can be completely free in metal or expensive in ceramic for exemple. So you have a solution if you're "poor". And another solution, with a nice new tooth if you can afford it or if your insurance covers it. The key here is you're not left with no teeth 😅

[@Maya_arn]

If you are a tourist you are covered so don’t worry if you travel in France you will be covered by the social security. We pay taxes for that too, everybody should be able to be treated for free or an affordable cost it’s an human right.

[@bertrandlahid6528]

troll on " les américains préfèrent les armes a feux comme human right" troll off 😞

[@kit-kat3356]

@@bertrandlahid6528 Troll on ‘’Crois tu sincèrement qu’ils choisissent? Un peu de respect! Troll off

[@bertrandlahid6528]

​@@kit-kat3356 mais bin sur qu'ils choisissent .... quand obama a voulu faire une secu a la francaise , ils ont en pas voulut , sous disant en faisant ca il allait tuer les petits vieux en leur piquant leur fric .. que c'est mieux chacun pour soit , bien sur qu'ils ont le choit , mais ils n'en veulent pas

[@mic498]

@@bertrandlahid6528 Je crois qu'une grande partie des américains préfèreraient avoir une sécurité sociale, mais leurs hommes politiques, tout comme les nôtres, sont des enfoirés.

[@megg8566]

I live in France and I make 2900 euros a month before tax so my net monthly income is at around 2200 euros. The 700 euros taxes I pay monthly on my salary cover 100% of my medical insurance for my entire family including all specialists and optical glasses(2 kids and unemployed husband), my income tax and retirement plan. All in all it is an excellent deal and I am more than happy to pay.

[@mic498]

It also pays for free education and regulation of prices by government, an excellent deal if you ask me

[@ericsicard910]

Even tourists have some access to care. The brazilian father of one of my friend visited him in France and made a bad step, and fell on his head. He was bleeding and there were some suspicion he broke something. Somebody saw this fall, called the emergency doctors (fire station in reality) 10mn later he was picked up to the hospital, 2 hr later after being checked (radiography) and treated, he could go out and it did not cost him a penny.

[@Pandemonis]

Frenchie here, with half his family in the medical system. There's a few things you forgot : 1/ You'll be treated first, no questions asked. We'll see the administration after you're ok. 2/ AME : Aide Médicale aux Etrangers : Whether you are a foreigner living and paying taxes in France, a legal or illegal foreigner (tourist or migrant), you have the right to care, free of charge. Viruses don't look at your papers, neither do our healthcare system. 3/ ALD : Affection de Longue Durée (Preexisting conditions) : This give you a free treatment for all healthcare treatment, as long as they are regarding your pre-exisisint condition 3/ CMU : Complémentaire Mutuelle Universelle (Universal Mutual Complementary) : if you're poor, homeless, whatever, everything is covered. You're not gonna have the best glasses (like the State wont pay for anti reflection or anti scratches glasses), but you'll have something Macron is destroying this system, and lots of carers are under a lot of pressure, so atm, the most urgent comes first, and the personnel is so short-staffed that they may not clearly see who is urgent and who is not, as hard as they try. Also, the caisse de le sécurité sociale (Social security funds) is funded by a specific tax on your payslip, whether you use it or not. It's not fully a governement-run agency, although they have their say, but it's mostly discussed by the corps intermédiaires (intermediate organizations : unions, mutuals, etc. : it's a complex system). TL;DR : Hyppocrat's oath : First do no harm, heal, and we'll see about the paperworks later.

[@ralphsearing7892]

Brit resident in France. Recently had minor abdominal injury. Got to see généraliste doctor next day. Appointment with surgeon 3 weeks later, and routine surgery scheduled for 2 weeks after that. Whole thing would have cost over 1500 €uros - social security paid 80% plus my top-up insurance paid the rest minus about 100€ (I only pay 50€ per month for the top-up insurance).

[@loners4life]

Wow! That’s very nice

[@Gazer75]

That is not cheap... Here in Norway the GP would cost about 30€, everything else would be 0 cost. I could even write up the transportation cost to the hospital as part of the annual copay. The 30 for the GP is also included in that. For 2023 copay about 300€ total. After that its free. This includes physical therapy and medication as well. Trip to the emergency room last year, in the middle of the night, cost me 35€ for the doc and a couple of strong painkiller capsules, and 2x15€ for the taxi they called to get me and bring me home again.

[@Lostouille]

​@@Gazer75 the gp in France cost 25€ 50€ is for the monthly private insurance. Mine cost around 27€/month

[@Gazer75]

@@Lostouille But if you don't have a private insurance to cover some of the last 20% it can get expensive, or is there a cap? Even 27€/month is more than the copay here, and you have to pay that even if you don't use it. In the example with 50/month that's 600 per year + the 100 the insurance didn't cover, so 700 total. More than twice the copay in Norway. That top up insurance don't seem like a good deal unless some procedures in France are very expensive. How about medication? Is that also only covered 80%? If you have a condition that require constant medication that could get expensive.

[@Lostouille]

@@Gazer75 For the GP we get rembursed so the real amount paid is 7€ , if you have a private insurance the rest to pay will depend , for the GP you wont pay it will fall to 0€ with 100% coverage (let's say it's the first choice of insurance) . For others it will be different , this summer I did my new glasses , with my insurance + national health care I had to pay 0€ (howhever I took an expensive model so the rest to pay was 60€, while the real price covered was 200€). The most expensive care here is 🦷 , I had to replace a babytooth that never fell . With the fabrication of the new tooth in ceramic + surgery + the examination the cost was 1800€ . The national healthcare struggle with dental care so you need in general a insurance to cover you up. Mine is level 2 , on these 1800€ I got back with both coverage (private and public) half of what I paid. For medication we have different categories of pills with "color stickers" and depending of the color it gets a different percentage of rembursement : if I remember blue stickers were 70% , white one were 80%. But the price are low so you end up paying nothing. You can add to that something else we have for the poorest one : the CMU-C an equivalent of a private insurance for health but provided by the state. It's free , you just have to prove that you can't even afford basic health private service . CMU-C makes the co-pay of 0€ for the patients and 🦷 is part of it too.

[@williamrufatobotura2545]

I can say I studied medicine in Italy and France… The gouvernement paid to me about 300-500 euros a month… they paid me to study.

[@yvesgonin1958]

I am French my Mum had a cancer and needed to go urgently in hospital. They did welcome her the next day. She stayed at the hospital 6 month and had Chimio. Then we had a bedroom ready and equipped for her at my sister's house. A nurse morning and evening for visit and the doctor every two days. My Mother received a 850 euros injections every week for around six month. After that, the doctor told us it was the end and we had to transfert her to an hospice where she passed away 3 days after. When we claimed for the final bill, the hospital told us 0 euro. We just had to pay for the rent of the TV for the 6 month she spent at first.... Few years ago, an American did hurt himself playing tennis. I took him to Hospital. The doctors replaced his bone after giving an injection. Going out I requested the bill and explained to the lady that this man was American and did not have " Securite Sociale" like us, So we had to pay 67 euros. The guy said :What ? He told me that he would have to pay between 3 and 4000 USD in New York.

[@Nvillota]

Force!

[@Adrienmon]

One of the reasons why American opinion, politicians and influential personalities won't take France as an example: Social Security has been mainly created by Ambroise Croizat, a communist Minister of Labour under the post-war Provisional Government. And unfortinatly we all know how the red scare (even against simple socialism) is still quite alive in the US, desipite it's far from having anything to do with the USSR...

[@laur4a768]

9:07 In area in France called Alsace we are covered 90%, so 70+20, which is awesome!

[@flotristval]

Yes 👍

[@benjaminlamey3591]

french living in germany here. French healthcare, is great. you don´t have to worry or do anything. it is all organised directly with your taxes. whatever happens you are covered, you can concentrate on your health and familly. in germany it is pretty much the same, just that there are different organism that you can choose from that reimburse a bit diffferently, but all in all, they never get you homeless and they will take care of you. just as a comparison, an engineer coming out of school gets about 30k dolars gross at the beginning. so 120k, is 4 times more than an engineer. with 120k you are in the top 5% even with a familly. The average gross yearly salary of professor at university is 75k a year. first years it is about 30k to 35k.

[@samxia1867]

as a french person, whenever i get sick i just go to the small clinic down my street, get diagnosed and prescribed in 30 minutes to 4 hours in depending on the day.

[@LetsChillPage]

Hello *Loners* from South France (Perpignan, close to the Spanish frontier), No matter you work or not, in France you're covered by social security. 80% is taken in charge by this system. The rest is paid by what we call work mutual (insurances). The mutual (supplementary health insurance) of your company which is compulsory for each employee, knowing that the largest part of the contributions is paid by the employer and that this mutual pays almost 100% of the rest of the invoice to be paid. On other hand, if your income is too low. Then you automatically benefit from the C.M.U-C. "Universal-Complementary Health Coverage," which allows you to be treated free of charge. Peace, folks. ☮😏

[@alexandterfst6532]

When I went to foreign countries for long-term work, I was shocked about the stress it was to know that you're trading off your health and your money. Asking yourself the question "how much is my health worth?" Is just an awful feeling I felt. French people like me really take our system for granted, and we won't change it anytime soon, for sure.

[@Pandemonis]

Dans la rue le 6 Joint ? ;)

[@PernelTV]

As a French who need long/lifetime treatment (cost 1000€ per month in Europe, the same treatment cost 7-8000 dollars in US), it cost me ... absolutely nothing. I don't have insurance (only the one for each people, free one). Here, we have health issue, we go to the doctor, it's free. You have an accident, broken arm or leg or whatever, cost nothing. Childbirth, same, free. You got COVID, one month in hospital cost ... nothing again. As Duke35 said, we all pay indirectly for everyone, and it's wonderful. Everyone is covered, even ambulance is free, you call they come, that's it. Every country/nation should have it. I think all Europe had.

[@douglasmcclelland]

The wages for a French GP of $120,000 dollars is an excellent wage. I work in IT in the UK and my wages are around $50,000... so French doctors, who get less than American doctors, still get a great wage. US doctors getting $218,000 is very expensive which obviously contributes to the costs being charged to the patients.

[@iriscollins7583]

With worst outcomes. Check the stats.

[@douglasmcclelland]

@@iriscollins7583 true, shows paying more does not get you better doctors or better outcomes.

[@Arcytl]

It’s a really great wage in France: over 100k a year puts you in the top ~5% of the population in terms of revenue…

[@loganleroy8622]

I think the disparity really becomes apparent when you get into specialties. A French surgeon that operates in the private sector will make 140,000 euros a year. In the US a general surgeon earns a median salary of $423,600 and that's just a general surgeon. The median salary for something like a neurosurgeon is ~$600,000. But it has to be that expensive because the cost to become a doctor and the loans you have to take out are also insanely expensive. And the price is so expensive because people are willing to pay for it because the salary they can earn is so high. The whole system feeds itself in a spiral.

[@Gazer75]

What half of Americans don't seem to understand is that a healthy population is better for everyone. They work and pay taxes to fund things. If a lot of Americans go to long before getting help or the insurance don't cover things properly so they might end up with a serious condition. It might result in long time health issues that reduces their ability to work and pay taxes. They also have less money to spend on entertainment, goods and so on. A person ending up on disability is not a good thing for the economy. That's a burden other tax payers have to cover. People going into serious debt will have no money left to spend on anything outside of the bare minimum to survive, which again slows the economy down.

[@sebastiannovotny8198]

As a matter of interest, a US student who was currently visiting us in the Czech Republic and had health problems had to undergo surgery to remove a kidney stone stuck in her ureter (laparoscopically, under full anesthesia), which cost her in total $904 (that needed to be paid cash but would be refunded from her travel insurance). I'm not sure how much medical care she would have gotten for that money in the US.

[@FacelessJanus]

Linda, the US forgets long term thinking when it comes to money. Accessible healthcare is important to keep those of working age, actually working. That benefits society most, specially financially. Higher income rate is aways better for the IRS, as it increases tax income, lower benefit rates to be paid, less people using benefits etc etc Funny discussion, as ther is a difference between two things here. Healthcare tourism, which I think is not covered by the French system, but if you are a tourist and something happens to you than you are covered as far as I know.

[@thorstenkoethe]

To get bankrupt because you had an accident or a long time disease is crazy. And to think about the money all the time prevents your body from recovery! No wonder that life expectancy is lower in the US than in Europe. Very sad.

[@loners4life]

It’s a scary reality we face here in the US!

[@sikrais]

Hi, french here. Hair transplant are considered plastic surgery, not life related, the Assurance maladie does not cover it. Turkey is just the closet country where this procedure is the cheapest.

[@Maëlys5673]

I'm french, and i think it's because we have a moral base which is "all lives have the same value", that this is democracy meaning in our way of seeing things, and one of the most serious things in France (and which is heavily punished by law) is the non-assistance to anyone in danger . if a life is lost because of you, you go to prison AND you are seen as the worst of the worst ! and to have to live in bad condition is not to live but to survive.... (of course, some don't think like that, but won't say so openly; racists, capitalists etc.)

[@Nono__YT]

Hi, french here. Btw this video do not cover the recent (2020) law that give even more access to important devices :the remainder at zero charge. it is a full reimbursement by Social Security and mutual health insurance for certain glasses, dental prostheses and hearing aids. The insured no longer has to pay for these care stations. This remainder at zero charge is possible in particular thanks to the fixing of ceiling tariffs.

[@loners4life]

That’s amazing!!

[@Nono__YT]

@@loners4life well as it was said, for us, universal healthcare is not a privilege, it's a right, a common value in our country. What I don't understand about people in US is that you know that mutualizing forces is always stronger than taking care of matters in an individual way. US companies and the liberal system know it but they just don't care about people... Only money ! Americans have to reverse the board and put some democracy in your systems (useless to say the world considers you are too lobotomized by your leaders). You have to put some limits to the liberalism, the mankind prevels ! Btw love u both, u are of these people that can change the rules with awareness 😀

[@preventiondechets1767]

oui pour les lunettes de base, si vous voulez choisir une monture et mettre des options (anti rayures, lumières bleues...) il faudra payer en plus ou avoir une bonne complémentaire pour ne rien payer.

[@Nono__YT]

@@preventiondechets1767 ben oui c'est le but. Que ceux qui ont besoin de lunettes aient des lunettes. Si vous voulez des éléments de confort ou esthétique, vous payez. C'est quoi le problème ???

[@fy_tv]

For example, when I was diagnosed with hepatitis C following dental surgery, I had all the tests done in one day and most of the results of said tests the same day. I also saw a specialist straight away without having to wait. Once my diagnosis was confirmed I was covered by "social security" and following appointments had to be made about a month in advance (most of this was handled by the hospital administartion). Taking everything into account, I was treated in 2 years, during those 2 years I had blood tests about every 20 days, several ultrasounds and fribroscans, I saw a specialist regularly and spent about one day a month surrounded by nurses for various physical tests, I was also entitled to treatment and psychological follow-up (which I didn't choose not to do). All this has cost me nothing and I continue to have free check-ups every year, even when I'm cured. (Bear in mind that my case is a bit special, since I was contaminated by a transfusion in a public hospital when I was 6, but I think it sums up a medical course for a chronic disease that has a treatment available in France).

[@CM-ey7nq]

Personally only have any real (i.e. actually sick for a while) experience with Spanish and Norwegian healthcare. Both have pros and cons, absolutely mostly pros, the most striking similarity is that they both feel a bit overworked but you always feel taken care of. Brief stint with the UK NHS, a broken arm, no complaints at all, just nice things to say. That, of course, was a simple thing. But smooth and no concerns. The Norwegian system learned from the Danish one concerning a very specific cancer type (think it was in the 90's), where the Danes were statistically better. Solution: Send a Norwegian health team down there. It worked out. Both very much within the same Nordic model, just one example of learning from each other within the same model without freaking out and changing things totally up. But have the best impression of the French one, as I have family there. Just seems to effective, well run and caring. My aunt died within the French health care system, but that only gave me a better impression of it. We're talking great care from admittance to huge respect and care to end of life.

[@HYPNO5E41]

Even tourist have access to social security there is some video out there about a mom who ended up givin birth and was totally shocked at how well she was treated for absolultly nothing (she still had to pay something i think its the ambulance 3€ or something...)

[@antoinegulbol6171]

French here, 110 000 euros a year is very comfortable, you could live in the center of Paris with that kind of wage, and a doctor in Paris will earn more than that. Every where else, doctors are considered amongst the best paid jobs, which is kind of normal given the 10-12 years of studying and the responsibility they have. Minimum wage is at 1500 euros/month and median wage is at 1800/month. And yeah, you're right you shouldn't have to pay to study, much less to become a doctor. But France has its own issues with health care, in the 70/80s there were too many of them, so they decided to put a limit on the number of students formed each year, they stopped doind that a few years ago but now we don't have enough doctors and its becoming a hassle to get an appointment if you don't live in the big cities, and even then some specialists are just in very high demand and in low numbers.

[@antoinegulbol6171]

Additionally, yes it's worth it, no question, if I ever get a cancer, I'll pay 0.

[@2eleven48]

Just googled....the minimum wage is $11.76 per hour in France (August 2022).

[@yd8104]

Gross of course

[@2eleven48]

@@herztone8002 ...'As of August 1, 2022, the minimum wage in France is €11.07 per hour.'

[@__MJ__]

in EU countries healthcare system is very easy to use and pay. For example you are paying 9% and your employer also pays 9%. And to be honest... you dont see this money. In money transfer you always get netto wages, so if you get for example 4000 eur and its is not enough, find another job and get 5000 per month. Everyone pays the same % of wages. and how long you have to stay in hospital? As long as you can go safely to home. There are 1 day hospital procedures but you can be there up to 6 months (or more) if needed. Also every EU citizen can use healhcare in every EU contry. So you can travel, work without worries in my country every worker has to be checked every 3 years with some checkups (blood tests, eyes, and other depends of your job). Also there are some prevetic checkups for olders. If you are older you can do more tests (usg, rtg, blood tests, blood preasure, diabetic tests etc). Preventing is much cheaper then treatment

[@VincentGrimm-d8l]

Liberty, equality and fraternity which means solidarity. In France even foreigners with no papers like people to whom asylum was denied can have a full social security coverage.

[@WilliamPenn-jr4by]

All I can say ,if I lived in the USA I would be so worried..My story is I collasped at home one night, Ambulance called (I live in the highland of Scotland) here in 25 mins, taken to Invernes Hosp, keep in for 2days for tests, So many Scans, found out I had Prostrate cancer stage 4 no cure ,keep in Hospital for another 10 days until they thought it safe to return home, but I get Zoom calls and blood test every 2weeks, sorry to go on ,if still awake cost to me nil. Am 75yrs old and have no problems at the moment living a normal life. Plenty of tablets to take ,still no charge. thank god for the NHS

[@alainbelloc1583]

French here. Stop talking taxes, please. Its mutualized salary, paid by both workers and employers

[@olivierdastein2604]

About the obligation of treatment in American hospitals : they *don't* have the obligation to treat you if you're uninsured and unable to pay. They have the obligation to *stabilize* you. If for instance you need an urgent surgery, they must do it, but if you need long-term care, follow-up procedures or medical care, they're aren't doing that. You'll be sent back home even if, say, you're bed-ridden, require drugs you can't afford and regular medical visits you can't pay for. Once you're urgent needs are taken care for, the rest isn't the hospital problem (at least not until you show up again because you state deteriorated again), unless you can pay.

[@kit-kat3356]

That’s horrific….

[@valentinp1397]

Allso 111,000/ year you rarely see that!!! The average salary is 1600€/month if you forget the stupidly high pay in Paris ( everything more expensive There) double it ( couples ) and you havé enough to take a credit for a house and a car paid in 10 and 25/30 years then at the âge of 65 average your house is paid and your next worry is what do i do now not to be bored to death when your retired but all your life you’d have worked really hard not halfassed or you’d be fired that’s why you don’t have to work as much hour as others country we used to say one french do in 1 day what 2 americans do in 4 days ( exagerated but true oddly)

[@EmmaginationMiss]

Concerning Medical students.... they have to pass quite a difficul exam if they want to have access to those studies. They may pay less but you have to be a very good student to pass this first exam.

[@EmmaginationMiss]

you don't pay your studies but you have to be a very very good student

[@pn4960]

They say France is paradise populated by people convinced they are in hell.

[@Alexandre_Sauron_Emery]

Hi! French guy here. o/ You said it, in France, everyone IS equal to his peers. French citizens (and strangers) are PATIENTS, not CUSTOMERS of their health care. And no, we do not fall in debt JUST for STUDYING.

[@rotalstrom]

Freedom, egality and equality. That's our France

[@Selph_EU]

French here, if you want to see a doctor for general medecine, you can book an appointment for the same day or the next. It can be longer in bigger cities but you also have access to medical centers which host a lot of doctors that receive without appointment. To see a specialist, it depends of the location and the speciality, it can go from a week up to 60 days for the most demanded ones. Price wise, a consultation is around 25€ with 80% reimbursed by social security and the rest covered by private insurance (cost around 40 € monthly for basic covering, 50% of those 40 is paid by your company). About minimum wage, it's around $1390 a month after tax, you can live with that in most of France but it would be harder in big cities though.

[@noefillon1749]

Really depends on where you are though. You could wait for half a year to see some specialists in 'medical deserts'

[@Selph_EU]

@@noefillon1749 Yup but this is more of a rural exodus problem and decades of numerus clausus than something related to the healthcare system. France is relying heavily on immigration to help with medical deserts for now but it will take a long time to reverse things back to normal. Add to this the fact that the lack of healthcare workers worsen the work conditions in healthcare jobs (people leaving, lack of attractivity)... :/

[@ESCLuciaSlovakia]

6:35 It depends. Tourists who are only visiting are covered, if they are from another European Union country *and* have a EU card proving that they are insured in their homecountry (I've had mine for almost 20 years now). People from outside the European Union are covered, if they have a commercial tourist insurance. If a foreigner is employed in Slovakia, they have to get their obligatory health insurance in one of our three insurance companies and then they are covered like locals. In general, it is mandatory to have a health insurance in Slovakia, if you have a residence in Slovakia. If you are employed, you have to co-pay the mandatory health insurance along with your employer (14% of your salary monthly), or pay it by yourself if you are self-employed, or pay it by yourself if you are unemployed (a few years ago it was like 80€ monthly). The state pays the health insurance for these groups of people: children until 18 y.o. (or even until 30 y.o., if they keep studying at the university); a parent on a parental leave (until the 3rd birthday of the child); retired people; disabled people; people in prison; people who are official caretakers of a disabled family member; people who receive the state social benefit for being in material need; foreign students; foreigners requesting asylum etc. And I also realized that our health insurance company gives us a card with our name, birth date etc. and it serves as a proof of our insurence. When you visit any medical facility, you have to present this card as the first thing, usually the nurse will collect the cards from patients while they are still in the waiting room, at a few places you hand it to them as soon as you enter the doctor's or nurse's room. It serves them as an identification, it helps them look up your name in their computer and also see your insurance company. So technically we are also asked for our insurance company before they even look at us, just like you. Hope you are having a nice day!

[@alexandterfst6532]

The only downside with our french healthcare system, outside of knowing whether it's efficient, is that each citizen contributes to the system based on their wage. Which means that if you take great care of your health, lowering your health risks, you are still paying for people who don't care. A large portion of french people are thus annoyed by smokers, cheap esthetic surgeries etc. : People taking risks because they know they have their a** covered in case they have a health problem afterwards.

[@nashtags]

French here. At 10:14 (No general practitioner approved to see a specialist) it's kinda untrue. We call it «Parcours de soins coordonnés» (something like «Coordinated care pathway»). It impose everyone to declare to Social Security it's main doctor and to go through his medical orientation before seeing a specialist. You can visit a specialist (exceptions for young people up to 26 years old for some specialists such as gynecologists or psychiatrists) but if you haven't been first visiting your declared doctor, you have 40% of the total of your reimbursement that is scrapped off. If you have been through your declared doctor, then you are fully reimbursed. The system also has some exceptions. But for example, it's kind of being a bit dumb if you have stomach problems and can't go straight to see a gastroenterologist. You first have to see your doctor, pay the normal amount of a normal visit, (you get reimbursed or sometimes, what we call «Tiers-Pays» which means you don't even physically «Pay» anything during your visit, everything is reimbursed and paid through paying systems between the Social Security, your Voluntary supplemental insurance and the practician) and only then you can visit a gastroenterologist. You were wondering about waiting time. It really depends and vary. Sometimes you can wait very long weeks (for specialists) and sometimes it's quite fast and easy. For example in Paris, for blood test and exams, I know I can go anytime, not having to wait nor taking an appointment in advance and have nothing to pay if I have a prescription. That's very good. On the other hand, we have more and more stories about people going to the ER and dying of having waiting too long. The system is really good but people dying in ER because they have waited over 8h should *not* happen in the so-called «best Health System» in the world.

[@alexcita6529]

bonjour guys yeap all tourist are covered by the social care in france , and many foreigns peoples comes for france hospital

[@MCFEROX6060]

Ne vous laissez pas abuser par les apparences.. Il faut bien que les américains, qu'ils soient amis ou pas, comprennent une chose, c'est que nous sommes différents en tous points.

[@riccardocoletta2398]

Minute 9:23 - French insurances cover from 70 to 80%. But consider also that French government negociates all drugs, medicine and treatments prices with the companies, thus the same treatment costs (before insurance step in) less than 1/20 in France than in US

[@christianc9894]

In the USA you pride yourself on being free. But when we look closely, you are above all free to pay, pay to study, pay to get treatment, pay, pay......... Your "freedom" is very expensive, right?

[@natgus1]

If I may add a comment... Also in the EU, we have a European Health card, if we travel in one of the others EU countries, this card will cover us in case of emergency. It is completely free and can be ordered whenever you need it.

[@patrickdemarcevol]

In France when you have a job, companies are obliged to pay for your private health insurance that will pay for the difference between what the social security pays for and the total the patient paid. Like if an operation costs 1,000 Euros, Social security will reimburse 70% and your private insurance will pay for the remaining 30%. Of course every month, part of your salary goes to a social security package (health and retirement) + a % towards unemployment and income tax. Like I make a gross 5,400 Euros a month but my check at the end is 4,450 Euros. Quite a sum, but you don't have to worry about anything.

[@19Edurne]

Things have changed since then and not for the best. Waiting time has increased for some specialities (up to 6 months in some cases), depending on where you live. My dentist retired and I'm still searching for a new one. Where I live, they don't take new patients because they are all fully booked months in advance. And for years now, you need a referal from your general practitioner to see some specialists if you want to get reimbursed.

[@andreaso7188]

In Sweden healthcare is basically free, only pay around $ 15-30 for the visit, including all tests, if i reach a max pay limit for care rest of the year is totally free. No doctor or medical personnel denies basic emergency health care. But health care is adapt for a population of around 8-8.5 million citizens, but now are we over 11 million people, how many in Sweden we are? Nobody knows, can be from 11-20 million people, we have good health care, but waiting list is long.

[@rolandcassar75]

The major benefit of our (French) health care system is that whatever your income, you NEVER have to worry about the costs of health care. The documentary says you get reimbursed 70 to 80%, but in case you have a serious or recurring condition, your doctor will register that condition in the system and ALL the costs will be covered for anything pertaining to that condition. If you are HIV positive for example, your medication is free of charge for you. If you have cancer, all treatments, even the most expensive, are free of charge for you.

[@nickduf]

C'est une erreur de croire que tous les soins sont gratuits en France, Les Français dans la majorité des cas, ou avec leur employeur payent une assurance complémentaire (mutuelle), un soir il y a deux ans, je suis allé aux urgences avec l'ambulance des pompiers à cause d'un lumbago, je suis resté toute la nuit sur place avec morphine, je signale que je n'ai pas d'assurance complémentaire. À ma sortie le lendemain matin, après le petit déjeuner, j'ai versé, un reste à payer de 300 € !

[@HiPnautique]

French here. What i find really weird is that even though the average American is generous, nice, caring, at least up to a reasonable standard, they also believe that contributing to the wellfare of others through tax solidarity is evil... and they have no issue providing cash help to all the gofundme campaigns, which is fundamentally the same as solidarity through tax but much less efficient as gofundme takes a big chunk of it... but they have no issue to pay taxes for civil servants, elected officials, police officers, fire fighters, ... massive lobbying and propaganda for generations. don't even start on education, infrastructure, transportation, etc. because of all that, the US (that thinks they are the greatest country in the world) is essentially a third world country, except for it's GDP. but that only benefits the 0.1%. and there is a very easy fix. just take 10% of the military budget and divert it to every important issue, and you'd get a very good base to cover pretty much all citizens.

[@inwedavid6919]

the median salary is around 1700€ in france, a salary of 3000€/$ is considered as a very good salary, enough to buy a big BMW car and a big house. doctors are seen as quite rich people here, and they salary is very high compared to other profession, even engineers. A low salary is around 1200€ a good one a bit more than 2000€. Of course if you live in paris the cost is higher then every where else.

[@andrewbrown1712]

The UK’s NHS treatment in ER is free simply because they haven’t worked out a way to bill foreign patients. You can’t access other healthcare however.

[@vaudou74]

the cost also covers all the family, if i work (and my wife don t) and i have 1-15+ kids underage, they are all covered at the same cost ( the 3k/year ), i can get private insurance to cover not so well reimbursed thing (optics and dentals for adults)

[@olivierdastein2604]

Americans tend to assume that universal healthcare comes with waiting list because the two systems they hear about are Canada, the neighboring country, and the UK, the foreign country they're most familiar with, that both use a similar healthcare system and both have waiting lists. However, waiting lists are the exception, not the norm in countries with a public healthcare system. Nevertheless, during the recent years in France, we've suffered for a shortage of doctors in a number of specialties resulting on long delays to see a specialists, in particular in rural areas. This was totally predictable, as it resulted from the numerous baby boomer doctors retiring, while the numerus clausus to enter medical studies was strictly maintained at the insistence of doctor's unions with the obvious consequences of the doctors retiring not be replaced by enough new ones. Regarding the medical treatment of tourists, there are agreements with other EU countries for the treatment of their nationals, but other foreigners, such as Americans, will be billed. However, medical costs are notoriously much lower in France for a number of well known reasons, such as higher salaries for doctors (and they also need to reimburse their student debts), large administrative costs made necessary by the complexity of the multiple insurance schemes, costly malpractice insurances, much higher cost of drugs not negotiated with the pharma companies, private hospitals needing to turn a profit, lack of economies of scale for administration or operations, absence of rationalization, in particular for costly equipment, resulting in an overequipment that must be amortized by each hospital by making exams more costly and often also by over prescribing them (the latter being also a result of the American "lawsuit culture" , causing "just in case" exams to be frequently prescribed.)

[@leokaizzer4744]

In France taxes are higher but after those taxes you have nearly free health but also school, university includes, all the supports for people without a job, and all those things, plus all the state expenses. So French pay much taxes but over all we're really winning with this systeme.

[@riccardocoletta2398]

Minute 16:28 - Minum wage all around Europe is 12 eur, with included from 20 to 40 paid days off, unlimited sick days, minumum 14 weeks of paid parental leave by law if you want to be in EU (Denmark 52, Norway 56). But even if the minimum wage is 12, the fact htat unions are very strong make it usually the wage higher: for example in Denmark, a McD workers starts at 22 eur/hour (with all benefits mentioned since the very first day of work) The cost of life in our most expensive countries (probably German, Denmark, Holland and UK) is from 5% to 10% less than US

[@riccardocoletta2398]

Minute 3:53 - I can talk about Italy. This "long waiting" is most a myth that your government told you. I can go to the doctor and be sure to be checked in no more than 1-2 hours. If I don't want to wait I can call the office and make a reservation in 1-2 days so that I can go at a specific hour of that day and be sure to be checked in no more than 20 minutes The only "long waiting time" is for "non urgent" exam and tests that can require months. If you don't want to wait you can go the private hospital or laboraty and by the fact that those exams are free in public hospitals, the prices in private hospitals re more accessible because they have to keep the price low if the want to be competitive For example: MRI In US it costs a bit more than 1000$ In Italian public hospitals is free In Italian private hospitals it cost around 125-150 and you get it in 1-2 days at the most If any exam is declared "urgent" by your doctor, you can go to any public hospital or the ER and you'll get it within the same day

[@pompom2813]

i'm French and, god, this is awesome to go in my job with the feeling that if i break my arm (or other), i will not have to pay hospital and drugs, and if i need to stay at home i will be pay and i can't be fire. We have many problem but this, is not one.

[@Jmichel4169]

If I give you my example, if I have the flu, a cold, stomach ache etc... I can have an appointment with my doctor during the day if she agrees to "slip" me between two consultations. A simple consultation costs 25€ 26.73$ if for a particular reason I have to see an ophthalmologist cardiologist or other specialist on average the cost is between 80 and 100€ 85 to 106$ and in all these cases my medical expenses are covered by Social Security and reimbursed between 75 to 100% And the same for pharmacy drugs.

[@lcreyes1114]

Hey, great reactions. About the college subject around 17min into the video; to add to college being free, we actually have a grant/allowance (?) « bourse » in French that goes to 550 euros based on your parents annual salary / revenue. The less they have, the more you earn. But there’s a limit to it where if the salary is too high, you don’t get any; that’s to keep it fair, it is,unless it’s just above the limit.

[@josephtournoux3167]

i am frenchman foreigners are treated in three cases 1 they are European (EU) care agreement between member countries 2 they work in France (as for a Frenchman part of his salary is deducted and therefore he is supported) 3 life-threatening medical emergency but after for case 3. France sends the invoice either to the international association which brought the person to be operated, or to the country of which they are a national or to him directly.

[@kit-kat3356]

Tu oublies le tourisme médical qui devient de plus en plus populaire en France.

[@williamwilkes9873]

It rains twice as much in new York as London....... get your facts straight!

[@kevanwillis4571]

In Luxembourg, next door to France, I can see my GP any week day by turning up before 11a.m. and normally waiting about thirty minutes. Afternoons are by appointment. After two mini-strokes, I went to the GP. She made me an appointment to see a specialist for the next day. The specialist kept me in hospital for observation and tests for four days. In a private room, with t.v. My biggest cost was for parking.

[@jbird4478]

Singapore. That one is more confusing than the US. They have a mixture of three or four different systems.

[@WilliamPenn-jr4by]

Get a PObox you two .British snacks could be on the way. Love to you both xx

[@zlask1]

Tourists are not covered in Norway unless you have travel insurance and they're not going to treat you for chronic stuff except prescribing medicines(which you would pay full price for) if you need them for a chronic condition but forgot them at home, but the bills are still going to be way smaller than American ones for surgery and so on even if you do not have insurance

[@maryshaw6419]

Okay so to weight in on the minimum wage in France, we have a 35h week work life, mostly obligatory 2 off day a week and relatively well paid overtime. Of course it's not a perfect system but we also have a lot of insurance towards our work, first, most companies if not all have a mutual that add to our socia security, taking some more of the potential medical fees in a lot of them you have a medical visit following your employment that is fully taken care by your company to evaluate your health, which might seem controversial but is actually quite practical and helpful, also allowing us to have easier sick leaves afterwards. We also have a lot of unions covering all type of works. And a court exclusively created to deal with employees/bosses disagreement. With all of that to "back us up" our live environment is generally less stressful so we are more healthy. Again our system is not perfect and some of my friends with more often medical issues have some complaints but almost never about cost. And to answer your question, a tourist having a medical emergency our even just a basic cold will be treated and taking care of the same way as a citizen would. As for our minimal wage we have smic, that is around 1200€ every month for a full 35h a week contract, general living cost vary depending on where you live, but it's mostly affordable if you win a smic every month, except in Paris of course

[@wendychouxx]

For me in the US health care is a business ( a bit luxurious brands ) and in France you really feel it’s a right for everyone

[@MaafaxKelen]

I'm french, the video is out for a moment, but for your first question : how many times do we wait for a care, the answer is really depending where you live. If you are far from big cities it's very long. Months. But in big cities it's somehow very fast if you are not expecting to meet a doctor very famous for a specific speciality. For example, few months ago I got an injure at my legs. I'm not used to see doctors very often so I waited a bit. After few days of pain I thought that seeing a doctor gonna take time but I used an app to get someone near my localisation fast. 2h later I was in my doctor cabinet. Exit with a paper to go to a MRI/scan and stuff like that. I took a meeting for the same day few hours later. And had an interview with a doctor in an hospital the day after. It took me less than 24h and 40€ (but I got them later thnaks to my professional assurance). Big city + an app changed my way of living in fear of getting hurt ^^

[@tantaihuynh1509]

This is 100% true in France. If you have low income, education(college, universities..) is nearly free.

[@riccardocoletta2398]

Minute 12:34 - Exaclty that, you mainly got it. In Europe "health care" is considered a basic human right and it's added in our constitutions. In US, health care is a "benefit" (in fact it's a benefit an employer can give you). And this is a BASIC health care. If you want a VERY GOOD insurance in US, it's not even a benefit but a luxury This is the diffefence: in Europe a good and high quality health care is a basic human right, in US it isn't a right but a luxury

[@watermelonandcookie]

I get an appointment the same day. You call at 8.15 and a doctor will call you back and if you need to see them they will make an appointment for that day. This is in Cornwall, England. When you see the doctor he might say you need X-rays or bloodwork etc which will be booked for the nest few days. Obviously in an emergency you get the tests done the same day.

[@monikadeinbeck4760]

I can only talk about Germany. When you have a permanent residence in Germany and a job or are a student you have public health insurance. As a tourist you have to take a private traveller's insurance.

[@anthonyguerin7659]

Yeah that was before Macron. I wish we were that good

[@anthonyguerin7659]

now we pay taxes for the police

[@XxShinJPxX]

In my area, Alsace, we pay 10% only for alls (doctor, medicaments, hospital ect) and i have a "mutuel" from my compagny who take the 10% i must pay. I can say its totaly free for me.

[@kaollachan]

one thing i m worried about as a french citizen is, when the current president was minister under the one before him, he passed a law changing how some medical act were refunded to hospital, i don t know the detail but in short, it came as medical care that are often made in public hospital give less money back to the hospital instead medical act more comon in private one get a better return. And with many other thing ( like trying to push retirement minimal age) sound like they want to turn France into USA system ( from what a friend told me the thing is, in the US when somebody get medical care he is the one paying, so it make more "money" in the national PIB ( GDP), where in france it is deduce for the country "money", and as most politician are the lawyer of people working in finance, only GDP or more profit is good). for the medical desert it is due to how city developped after the war maybe ? for me it is because we have countryside with many agricultural field that previously needed lot of man power, but now with automatisation and stuff one man can do the same work as 100 in a shorter time, most rural village are empty with mostly eldery. and as they are isolated you NEED a car to move around even for shopping it is less pratical. currently both general doctor and worker in public hospital as for get a better salary, and with reason. there is many other problem, like reduction the number of "bed" in hospital to reduce cost, but they don t they don t have the workforce to work with when there is a surge like we had with the pandemic.

[@stephane4266]

In France we have a saying. In America if you do not have money or health insurance well... the doctor tell you that you are healthy...

[@Just_one_girl]

As a french we wait like 1 week but sometimes it can be like a few month for very special doctor

[@olivierdastein2604]

Some things that haven't been mentioned I think about the French system : it's technically not a state-run system. The "securite sociale" is an organization independent from the government, mostly funded by a tax on salaries, and theoretically run by representatives of the employed and employers, but the difference is more and more blurred, as the increase of complexity and costs required more and more interventions of the state in its operations and funding to the point where it's now almost as closely controlled by the government as a state agency would be. The "80% of costs are paid by the healthcare system" thing is misleading. It might be true on average, but it's now how it works on practice. Seeing a generalist doctor costs you two euros out of pocket. Reimbursement for drugs range from 100% to 0% depending on the drugs and your medical condition. Hospital don't give itemized bill but charge a standard daily fee, regardless of the treatment you receive. Dentists charge vastly more than the costs reimbursed by the social security, leaving you with a huge co-pay. And so on. Most people have a complementary insurance to cover the costs not reimbursed by social security (specialists or dentists charging more than the reimbursement base, individual room in private hospitals, fancier than strictly necessary dental works, items that aren't reimbursed at all, part of the cost of not fully reimbursed drugs, etc...) . What hasn't been mentioned though is that the majority of these complementary private insurers in France aren't for-profit private companies but non-profit NGOs, mutual insurers, that is associations of insured people. I vote regularly to elect the board of my complementary medical insurer, for instance (and in fact, it's true for other kind of insurances : my home and civil liability insurers are also non-profit mutual insurers.) That's a system that guarantees that the insurance is ran for the exclusive benefit of the insured. The are also private for profit complementary insurers, and in case you'd wonder why anybody would choose those, that's because they're cheaper....cheaper, that is, until you get older or have a serious medical condition, at which point they'll make you pay through the nose to keep your coverage, and won't be as accommodating as a mutual insurance with regard to what exactly they cover or not (but being Americans familiar with for profit insurers, you know that, while the young French guy with no particular medical issue might not expect this when he signs with the cheap for profit insurer.)

[@riccardocoletta2398]

Minute 18:04 - 111.000$ per year is MORE than decent. It's a very good income in Europe. I don't even get half of that and I can easly manage to grew up my two children, go 3 week on holiday on summer and 1 week in winter. My life style is surely higher than "decent": I go out for a dinner or a night out once or twice a week, I bring my childrens at the cinema twice a month; both of them have extra activities (theatre and sport). In Italy a 111.000$ annual income is much more than decent, it's very very near to "rich"

[@anthonyguerin7659]

3:45 I can be seen by a general doctor tomorrow. But it's true if in remote places its gonna be longer. But you don't pay the ambulance or the helicopter

[@gurnkeep1648]

in poland per monts In the case of a tax scale, the amount of the contribution on health care cant be lower than 9% of the minimum wage that would be min of 847$ per year minimum

[@jeromegastan2887]

I’m from northern france it doesn’t take long to get an appointment I sometimes managed to get appointment on the same day, but generally it takes 2 days where I live.