Strengths & Weaknesses of the Health Care Plan of France

With much debate about how America should proceed with its health care reform, attention has been focused on how other countries do it. According to a survey by the World Health Organization in 2000, France provides its citizens with the best overall health care. These findings were confirmed by a 2008 study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine that ranked the French lowest of 19 industrialized nations in deaths preventable by good health care. Although the French plan has several strengths, it is not without some key weaknesses.

Expense as a Strength

• In comparison with the amount of money spent every year on health care in the United States, the cost of the French health care plan is one of its strengths. It is still considered expensive by worldwide standards, but proportionately, it spends less than is spent in America, where coverage doesn't apply to everyone.

  France spends 11 percent of its gross domestic product on health care. With this considerable sum comes health coverage for all French citizens. In contrast, America spends 16 percent of its GDP on health care and leaves millions of its citizens uninsured, a 2009 study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) found.

Coverage

• Another strength of the French health care plan is that the people who need it most get the best coverage, according to a report by Joseph Shapiro, Science Desk correspondent for National Public Radio, on NPR.org.

  French citizens who are the sickest individuals, typically making up about 3 to 5 percent of patients, are covered 100 percent by the national insurance plan. There are no co-payments required for treatment or medication and all premiums are completely covered.

Patient Choice

• French patients can freely choose which doctors and specialists they wish to see, writes Shapiro at NPR.org. In France, there are no restrictions on which doctors a patient can see and no need to get referrals to see a specialist. Doctors may prescribe any treatment or medication they see fit to best deal with the illness or injury. They do not have to stick to a list of procedures or medicines approved by health care authorities.

Supplemental Insurance Needed

• One weakness of the French health care plan is that it only covers 70 percent of costs for the majority of people. The additional 30 percent is typically paid for with supplemental insurance policies available throughout the country. This means the citizens still must pay premiums, although they are reasonable, Shapiro reports, and often partially paid by employers. This supplemental insurance is not mandated, however, and people may choose to pay the difference out of pocket instead.

Expense as Weakness

• From a national standpoint, a significant weakness of the French plan is the expense to taxpayers. The health plan is funded primarily through income tax, which results in about 21 percent of workers' earnings going to pay for the health care system, a little more than half of which is paid by employers, who have complained that the expense impedes their competitiveness, according to the NPR report. And France has not been immune to rising health care costs. The government has raised fees for some services in an attempt to rein in a 2009 health system deficit of $9 billion, and it will likely continue to face cost-cutting pressures.