The medical agreement signed at the beginning of June ratified from December the increase in the amount of the consultation with the general practitioner from €26.50 to €30 and an increase in the minimum price charged by several specialists (gynecology, psychiatry, pediatrician, etc.). After months of negotiations, a long consultation at €60 for patients aged over 80 was also created. It will be accessible under conditions, from 2026.
An increase in costs borne in part by Social Security, but also by health insurance, which reimburses these services to their clients. Should we then fear an increase in premiums in 2025?
“The transfer of costs to Social Security and mutual insurance always ends up being paid by the insured person”decides the co-founder of the comparator Assurland Olivier Moustacakis. “When coverage for dental care by Social Security goes from 70 to 60% in October 2023, this leads to an increase in contributions. If complementary health insurance reimburses more, it compensates by increasing contributions. If Social Security continues to cut back on reimbursements, inevitably it will continue to swell,” confirms Maria Roubtsova, health mission manager at UFC Que Choisir.
Insurers will “demand increases in premiums greater than the increase in healthcare costs, while reimbursing less. The good citizen will take the full brunt of the increase in out-of-pocket costs” predicts Frédéric Bizard, on his blog “For fair health”. And “we cannot say that this agreement has not already been incorporated into the bonuses”also estimates the health economist.
10% increase in 2024
In January 2024, policyholders recorded an average annual increase in complementary health insurance of around 10%. “These price peaks were also explained by the general aging of the population, the improvement of medical technologies and the increase in the price of care (+ 4.8% in 2023)”, recalls Olivier Moustacakis. Because this average hides major differences. For example, retirees have suffered increases of 25% on average for several years and pay several hundred euros per month to protect themselves.
So how to do it? “We recommend comparing! »repeats Maria Roubtsova who also calls for better readability of quotes. “If I make two quotes, they must be in the same format so that I can properly compare them. We would also like the prices to be visible on the health insurers’ website, without compensation and without having to provide personal data, which is systematically the case”continues the expert.
The contract offering will also be able to adapt to market changes. To control their budget, policyholders will be able to turn to à la carte contracts, without giving up treatment, on the model of per kilometer packages in car insurance. “100% health is not useful for everyoneillustrates Olivier Moustacakis. Between optics, dental and audio, not everything serves you. And even if contracts which are not the common base are taxed more (20% versus 14%, Editor’s note)we must compare.”
The insurers contacted believe that it is too early to comment on the prices applied in 2025.
