David W. Says:
What medical care is available to U.S. Citizens who relocate to France?
IL France Correspondent Tuula Rampont Says:
Hello Dave, thank you for your question.
Fortunately, signing up for French healthcare is easy and very affordable. Everyone goes into the public system (no need for private care), which is excellent. France operates under a universal healthcare system in which everyone is entitled to receive medical services.
There are no age restrictions, pre-existing condition limitations, or networks to join. You can see any doctor, anywhere, at basically any time they are available. Expats in possession of a long-stay visa (issued for 12 months and then renewable), are eligible to enroll in the healthcare system after three months of living in the country. France must be your primary residence for six months of the year.
Once on the system, you are entitled to a 70% to 100% reimbursement on medical services—which are already incredibly low-cost. Top-up insurance (rates start at around $55 a month) covers the rest.
In plain language, a person not enrolled in France’s public healthcare system pays $29 (€25) for a doctor’s visit. Once registered in the system, doctor fees and specialist fees are 70% off—$9 and $17, respectively.
Hospital stays cost $112 (€100) a day and are covered at 80% for the first month (meaning you pay $22 a day), and you pay nothing after the first month.
To cover healthcare, the French government taxes 8% of your income (after a standard allowance of around $11,000 per person). As a ballpark figure, an individual who has income to declare to the French government of $30,000 will pay around $1,520 a year in healthcare.
I go into detail about French healthcare, including pharmacies, dentists, and retirement homes, in Chapter 8 of our comprehensive guidebook, Escape to France, available on the IL website here.
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