France Medical Insurance
Global Health Insurance is a market leading medical and healthcare brokerage. We offer France insurance health advice to the expatriate community and pride ourselves on searching and selecting the right plan for you. As the France insurance health plan market continues to grow there is an even greater need for good quality advice and recommendations. Our international medical consultants constantly search the market for new policies that may better serve the needs and requirements of our France insurance health plan clients.
- Individual Plans
France insurance health plans designed for individuals. These plans are flexible, annually renewable and can be tailored to meet your specific medical requirements.
- Family Plans
Family is the most important thing in many of our lives. Our medical consultants can recommend international health insurance cover to provide protection for all the family.
- Group Plans
Medical insurance is vital for today’s business. Executives often travel extensively in the course of their job and we can advise you on what levels of cover are needed and can often obtain group discounts on your behalf.
- Travel Plans
France insurance health plans designed for people visiting or working in Hong Kong. Policies can be tailored for either for the short or medium term, but the trip cannot exceed 12 months.
Global Health Insurance aims to provide you with the complete insurance solution; everything from choosing the right medical plan to reimbursement of claims to choosing your hospital. This is all done in an efficient, customer focused manner ensuring your France insurance health plan gives the right cover for you.
Bordered by Spain to the south and Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy to the north and east, and having coastline on both the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, France's landscape and climate varies widely. Known widely for culture, arts, and dining, France enjoys a huge tourism industry both from neighboring European Union countries and worldwide. In 2010, France attracted almost 79 million tourists from other countries, making it the most popular destination in the world for tourism that year. With a very high GDP, currently the placed as the fifth wealthiest country worldwide, France's population of 63.8 million understandably enjoy a very high standard of living.
France Health Care and Insurance
In its 2000 report ranking all national health care systems worldwide, the World Health Organization placed France at the top, stating it had the “best overall health care”. This is easy to comprehend considering the government spends approximately 11 percent of its annual budget on health care subsidy, an exceptionally high figure even when compared with most other developed countries. The socialized medical system implemented by France is a mix of both public and privately financed health insurance offering a universal health care initiative with the goal of ensuring that every resident has access to affordable high quality medical services. Throughout all areas of France, hospitals, clinics, doctor's and dental offices abound. There are three platforms for hospital in France, public, non-profit private and for-profit private, accounting for about 65 percent, 15 percent, and 20 percent respectively of the hospital facilities available in the country. All offer modern procedures, experienced physicians, and well trained staff and all are able to treat any common ailments and have right of referral to other facilities when necessary.
As a leading edge medical provider, France sponsors numerous outreach programs to other countries around the world in more dire medical condition as well as training, education and experience exchange arrangements, and outreach programs to assist those countries. The French medical education offered in its universities and teaching hospitals is world class and through its philanthropic efforts, has served to benefit countries around the world. In addition to tourism to regular French attractions, many foreigners find that medical treatment in France is often quite affordable, with most surgical procedures averaging 35-50 percent cheaper than the cost for the same care in the United States or other highly developed European nations, thus France has a burgeoning medical tourism industry. Dental care is less expensive than most other countries that offer comparable treatment.
French Health Insurance Concerns
The French health insurance system is overseen by the Ministry of Health, which has two primary functions. The first is to ensure fair pricing of commodities, primarily pharmaceuticals, and set standard rates of reimbursement for normal procedures, this is done annually. Doctors and health care facilities are allowed to set fees higher than these standard rates, but the additional expense will thus be borne by the patient, should he choose that treatment. The hope is that this breeds competition and thus a stable price system. The second responsibility of the Ministry is overseeing the function of the public hospital health care network and to oversee the management of the public health care insurance funds, ensuring economical and efficient operation of both.
The French National Health Service is conglomerate of government funded agencies which offer a standard plan to all residents. When medical care is needed, the patient merely selects a care provider of their choice and then receives the treatment. Payment is then made by the patient and a typical reimbursement of between 70-85 percent is made to him from the French government's medical insurance system. The remaining 15-30 percent serves as the co-payment by the patient. In some instances, such as long term care or extended hospital stays, up to 100 percent may be reimbursed. Additionally, to lower co-payments, other private insurance plans can be purchased by the individual from third party providers to cover the remaining expense. The universal healthcare system is funded via the French Social Security program which takes in tax revenue from workers and disperses payment equally. The belief is that while all but the poorest French must pay, at a fixed rate of taxation, the medical treatment will be equal and available to all regardless of the amount paid by each individual. Socialized medicine has been criticized by the wealthiest percentage of the population as overbearing on high wage earners who typically are in good health and in the prime of their life, thus not needing much medical attention, however France argues that the system is not intended to be “fair” but rather to provided the right to care, regardless of social status, to all. Fair or not, the system is not without flaw as it has frequently operated at a deficit over the last 20 years and 2010 figures estimate a financing shortfall of about €10 billion.
Another problem facing the French health care system is retention of its healthcare professionals. As part of the European Union, doctors and nurses are able to move to almost any part of Europe that they choose and practice medicine. This is enticing to many as the pay in France is often lower than that of neighboring countries and thus they choose to relocate in favor of higher pay. The result is an understaffing problem from time to time in the country.
France Travel Insurance Information
While no additional vaccines are required to travel to France, it is always wise to be sure that all routine vaccinations are up to date, and that you receive any necessary booster shots required to maintain immunity. In years past, tap water was often considered unfit for drinking, however now the situation has been addressed and water is considered safe for consumption throughout France. Sanitary sewer systems on the other hand have not seen as much interest by the government and as of 2006, France was only 40 percent compliant in proper pretreatment of disposed waste water to ecologically sensitive areas, making it one of the lowest rated countries in the European Union. While this will not directly affect the general health on a daily basis, it may be an element of concern when choosing to swim in lakes, streams, or at some beaches and when ordering seafood. Travelers should also be aware of the danger of tick borne diseases, especially when hiking in wooded areas, as cases of Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis have been reported. Tourists visiting during summer months should also be aware of over exposure to sun and dehydration as France can be quite warm at this time.
France Expatriate Medical Insurance
Whether looking to relocate to France or visiting on holiday or business, it is the course of wisdom to ensure that you are prepared. Global Health Insurance has France Medical Insurance plans that will fill this need. Our Insurance Experts are available to offer consultation, free of charge, to assist you in choosing the coverage that best fits your needs, no matter travel plans, group size, duration of stay, or budget.
Want to ask a question or leave a comment? Click Here
Recent Questions / Comments:
| Click Here to Read the Answer | |
| Hi, My mom will be coming from north africa to visit me in the USA and stay for acouple of weeks. Recently she has been having a heavy hand and legs feeling. She has been prescribed a medication that is usualy prescribed for patients with mild parkinson's. I would like to get some second opinion and test(scans) performed on her in the USA. I don't think that she has parkinson's and I would like to confirn this in a center/hospital that I trust. My mom has an inssurance coverage with mutuelle Maroc,which is a partner with SwissLife and AXA. I wonder if she can get an international coverage with your company that will covers specialist evaluation, MRI, and oether scans if necessary. Thank you | |
| Click Here to Read the Answer | |
| Hi, We (Doanldson Europe BVBA in Belgium) are looking for a hosptal & medical insurance for one of our families (family van den Enden) we are relocating to Brockville, Canada. Up till now we haven't found an insurance compay willing to cover the pre-existing condition of Mrs. van den Enden which is bronchial asthma. Would you be able to offer us a solution with an insurance who is willing to cover also the pre-existing condition. Thanks in advance for your reply, Veerle Matthijs | |
| Click Here to Read the Answer | |
| do you have any insurance plan for Ivf treatment? Like if the first attempt is not successful then is there any plan to cover the next attempt? | |
