The Confederation of French Medical Unions (CSMF) joined all unions representing liberal doctors on Monday September 18 to call for a strike from October 13. This movement, which could be unlimited, calls in particular for an increase in the price of consultations.
The CSMF, one of the major unions in the sector, “calls on all private doctors, general practitioners and specialists to massively follow this indefinite strike movement and to cancel their medical activity,” it wrote in a press release published Monday. The government must “invest to make” these professions attractive, she pleads.
After the failure of conventional negotiations with Health Insurance last winter, doctors continued to protest against an arbitration settlement which set the prices for consultations at 26.50 euros for general practitioners and 31.50 euros for specialists, i.e. an increase of 1.50 euros.
They demand the immediate resumption of discussions and ask, depending on the organization, between 30 and 50 euros for the basic consultation. “We are warning the government about the extreme tension in the profession,” warned Jean-Christophe Nogrette, deputy secretary general of the main general practitioner organization, MG France, on September 12, who is currently calling for a strike. ‘one day, “renewable”.
The four other representative unions launched their appeal in June. For the FMF, it is at this stage a “renewable strike”, but the others (Avenir Spé, UFML, SML) are calling for an “unlimited” stoppage of activity. Doctors are also up in arms against the bill from MP Frédéric Valletoux (Horizons) aimed at “improving access to care through the territorial commitment of professionals”. Many fear that this text will carry the seeds of new obligations for liberal practitioners, particularly in terms of guards.
“You must read carefully […] Frédéric Valletoux clearly reiterated that his text did not include an individual obligation for continued care, nor regulation of freedom of installation,” reacted, in an interview with Quotidien du Docteur, published Monday evening, the director of the National Health Insurance Fund Thomas Fatôme. “I hope that the resumption of negotiations can take place without delay.” The Cnam expects “new solutions” from the unions, but will not “reformulate proposals that have not worked […] The contract is over,” he promises.
Last winter, the Cnam proposed, triggering the ire of doctors, a price of 30 euros for those who would commit to certain considerations, such as taking more patients, working night shifts or practicing in a medical desert. “I hear and I listen: anyone who did not understand that 30 euros was a major issue has not followed what has happened in recent months,” added Mr. Fatôme.
