Insurance companies withdrawing from California and the hospital in France under pressure from the flu epidemic, in “franceinfo and you” from Friday January 10, 2025

Every day, franceinfo answers your questions on the radio about the news and its treatment.

In franceinfo and you, Franck asks: “Is it true that American insurance companies are canceling certain contracts because of the fires in California ?” Kamala Harris, the Vice President of the United States, expressed concern about this situation on Thursday January 9, 2025, saying that some residents may have difficulty recovering from this disaster.

In recent years, California has been the victim of an exodus of insurers. Companies have measured the climate risk and many have decided to withdraw by not renewing their coverage in risk areas. This phenomenon has been growing for 4 years. As many as 100,000 Californians lost their coverage between 2019 and 2024.

Another subject that raises questions: the state of the hospital under the pressure of a particularly virulent flu epidemic. Many listeners, like Martine, point out the lack of resources that French medicine still suffers from: “With no more doctors in town, people are going to the emergency room.” But others, like Sab or Julien, get annoyed by people who don’t respect barrier gestures, or go to the emergency room too quickly, when staying in bed and waiting for paracetamol to work can sometimes be enough.

The fact remains that this year, Public Health France indicates an “exceptionally high” level of hospitalizations, which triggered the white plan in 87 hospitals, this system makes it possible to deprogram certain operations or to recall staff from leave.

To talk about it, Benjamin Davido, infectious disease specialist, COVID-19 referent at the Raymond Poincaré hospital in Garches, will be with us.