Bruno Retailleau assures him: the Bayrou government will “touch” state medical aid (AME), a subject which has divided the right and the left for many years. To support his position, the Minister of the Interior, from the ranks of LR, suggested that this aid, which ensures that foreigners in an irregular situation are treated for several pathologies under certain conditions, contributed to making France attractive: “If we are above the average of what Europeans do in terms of care, in terms of social assistance, in terms of family reunification, the networks of smugglers, human traffickers, will direct flows to France, rather than towards other countries,” he assured at the microphone of BFMTV.
Citing a report submitted in December 2023 to the former Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin, Bruno Retailleau also affirmed that this state medical aid is “an encouragement to clandestinity”: “For the AME, I ask this that we take up the conclusions of a report that Mr. Stefanini and Mr. Evin had made and which had shown that the AME was in fact an encouragement to clandestinity, he explained. »
What is it really? 20 Minutes reviewed these two assertions.
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In their report, Patrick Stefanini and Claude Evin appear more nuanced than the Minister of the Interior. The two authors note that access to care “is only one factor among others” for the choice of immigration destination. Other factors come into play, such as “language, the existence of diasporas, some of which are a consequence of decolonization, [l’existence d’une] allowance paid to asylum seekers, education conditions and prospect of recognition of asylum requests, [ou encore le] unconditional right to emergency housing. They also note that “employment prospects, food aid, transport aid, [ou encore] schooling” play.
Already in 2019, the Defender of Rights and a survey carried out by researchers from the University of Bordeaux and Irdes refuted the suspicion of a “call for air” that the AME would create.
As for the European comparison put forward by Bruno Retailleau, what about it? Is France average with our neighbors? The authors of the report underline that “the comparison of access to care for foreigners in an irregular situation in Western Europe” proves “delicate”. However, for them, it “does not allow us to conclude that there is an attractive factor likely to direct migratory flows towards France”. Translation: French policy on access to care does not stand out compared to our European neighbors in terms of attractiveness for people in an irregular situation.
-On the other hand, does the AME “encourage” clandestinity, as Bruno Retailleau points out? The authors are also more nuanced here and do not speak of “encouragement” but of “maintenance” in clandestinity.
They note that this aid “contributes” to maintaining an irregular situation, even if “the interlocutors met by the mission were divided in this regard”, develop Claude Evin and Patrick Stefanini. Since AME beneficiaries are precarious, presenting a beneficiary card allows, in certain situations, access to other services, such as food banks or solidarity pricing in the canteen. “It is the sum of these advantages” which contributes to maintaining clandestinity.
The extent of this aid, which ensures the treatment of several pathologies for foreigners in an irregular situation, has divided the right and the left for several years. To benefit from it, an adult foreigner must have resided in France for more than three months and must not have resources exceeding 847 euros per month. For adults, costs are covered 100% within the limits of Social Security rates. Certain medical procedures and medications deemed less effective are not covered.
According to the report, the number of AME beneficiaries almost doubled between 2009 and 2022, going from 210,000 to 400,000. What care do they receive? They most often go to hospital to have a pregnancy monitored and give birth (15% of stays in 2022) and to have dialysis, chemotherapy or radiotherapy sessions (39% of sessions in 2022).
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