France has vowed to fine patients who miss a doctor’s appointment in a bid to free up millions of places.
Anyone who does not attend the consultation will be fined €5 (£4.30) in relation to the planned move.
French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said the policy would support the ailing health care system as it struggles to meet the increasing demands of an aging population.
But health experts rejected the measure, warning it “wouldn’t work” and describing it as “an attempt to blame patients.”
Similar plans have been floated in Britain, amid pleas from doctors themselves.
French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said the policy would support the ailing health care system as it struggles to meet the increasing demands of an aging population. But health experts rejected the measure, warning it “wouldn’t work” and describing it as “an attempt to blame patients.”
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Under France’s yet-to-be-approved plan, patients would be required to provide debit or credit card details when making an appointment.
If they don’t show up without at least 24 hours’ notice, doctors can legally fine them.
Patients with a valid reason for missing their appointment would still be exempt.
Officials hope the fines will take effect from January. The change in law will be submitted to the French parliament in the coming months.
Parts of France have been labeled ‘medical deserts’ because they lack doctors and medical facilities, forcing residents to travel long distances for care.
The government said its goal was to ensure everyone had a doctor within 30 minutes of home.
But Gérard Raymond, president of Assos Santé, a patients’ group, said: “This is not a way to make patients more responsible, but an attempt to blame them and make them feel guilty for the shortcomings of the system.”
Patrick Pelloux, head of the emergency doctors’ union, also told local media: ‘This won’t work. It’s just a tax and health care could suffer.”
Rishi Sunak last year backtracked on his own promise to introduce a £10 fine for Britons who failed to show up for GP appointments, admitting it was ‘not the right time’.
But in August, Health Secretary Maria Caulfield said the plan, first drawn up during Sunak’s bid to become leader of the Tory Party, could not rule it out in the future.
Each missed appointment is estimated to cost the NHS around £30.
The latest NHS data shows that in February almost 1.3 million GP appointments in England were classified as ‘no-attend’, meaning a patient who had previously booked did not show up.
This figure represents 4.2 percent of all appointments that took place that month.
Health experts today warned that any proposal to introduce a charging system would be ‘counterproductive’ and a ‘mistake’.
Ruth Rankine, director of the primary care network at NHS Confederation, said: ‘Our members are clear that introducing a cost system is not the long-term solution and could be counterproductive.
‘Introducing a penalty system could also cost the NHS money and add an extra level of bureaucracy to primary care services, with staff having to manage collecting and chasing payments on top of all the other work they have to do.’
She warned it could also deter people from seeking help when they need it.
Professor Kamila Hawthorne, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: ‘It is frustrating when patients miss appointments, especially when they are in such high demand, but it would be a mistake to introduce fines for patients who don’t show up.
“Not only would it be contrary to the founding principle of our health care system – to provide free care at the time of need to all who need it – but there may be legitimate reasons for missing an appointment, and it could be an indication that something more serious is going on. wrong.
Rishi Sunak last year backtracked on his own promise to introduce a £10 fine for Britons who failed to show up for GP appointments, admitting it was ‘not the right time’. But in August, Health Secretary Maria Caulfield (pictured) said the plan, first drawn up during Sunak’s bid to become leader of the Tory Party, could not rule it out in the future.
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‘We would always urge patients who cannot keep an appointment to report this to the practice as soon as possible, so that the appointment can be offered to someone else.
‘The pressure on the NHS must be addressed with investment and better workforce planning – not by introducing a charging system that will make things worse.’
Meanwhile, Dennis Reed of Silver Voices, which campaigns for older Britons, added: ‘While I have no sympathy for those who regularly fail to attend appointments with their GP, it must be recognized that sick and vulnerable people can often experience conditions that can lead to non-presence leads.
‘Examples such as transport delays, emergency situations for healthcare providers, bad weather or simple forgetfulness should be taken into account.
‘However, regular unexplained no-shows should lead to sanctions.
‘The question is whether a small fine is sufficient for such patients. Threatening with removal from the practice list unless their behavior improves would have more impact.”
A survey of more than 1,000 Brits last year also found that more than half (51 percent) would support £10 fines for patients who miss GP or hospital appointments.
The Ipsos Mori survey also shows that a quarter of respondents admit to having avoided a GP appointment in the past twelve months because they found it too difficult.
It comes as a damning analysis last week found that almost one in twenty patients have to wait a month for an appointment.
A survey of more than 1,000 Brits last year also found that more than half (51 percent) would support £10 fines for patients who miss GP or hospital appointments. The Ipsos Mori survey also shows that a quarter of respondents admit to having avoided a GP appointment in the past twelve months because they found it too difficult
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The number of patients faced with long waiting times of a month or longer has increased by 38 percent in the past year – from 12.8 to 17.6 million appointments.
In parts of the country such as the Vale of York, four-week waiting times have risen by 80 per cent in the same period, analysis of NHS data shows.
GPs have long complained of being overwhelmed by the pressures of a growing and aging population and a lack of government funding.
GPs have reported having to cram up to 90 appointments a day, a situation comparable to that of an assembly line.
According to recommendations from the BMA and the European Union of General Practitioners, GPs in Britain should now make no more than 25 appointments per day to ensure ‘safe care’.
Patient satisfaction has also fallen to its lowest level in forty years.
According to the GP Patient Survey 2023, a survey of 759,000 Britons, only seven in ten (71.3 percent) described their overall experience of their GP practice as ‘good’. Satisfaction has fallen to an all-time low.
But GPs have also warned that strikes are still ‘on the table’ after a referendum among GPs carried out by the British Medical Association found that 99 per cent of 19,000 respondents had rejected the new NHS contract.