When you move to France, it is important to consider a number of factors before you decide on the right health or medical insurance policy for you:
1. Health Insurance is widely known as ‘complementary’:
As you are required to cover any difference between what the state pays and the total cost of treatment, French residents often take out an insurance policy to cover themselves. This is known as complementary, or top up, health insurance (see our feature What is Top Up Insurance for a clear explanation). The difficulty comes when deciding who to insure yourself with, as there are well over 1,000 providers of complementary medical insurance in France.
2. There are two different types of insurer:
The two different types of provider of complementary health insurance are mutuelles, which are are non-profit organisations, and the commercial insurers (more on this subject in our Expat Guide to Medical Insurance in France.
3. You can get extra cover
Healthcare in France is provided by the state, but you have to contribute. For instance when you go to a doctor you’ll pay a certain amount, some is reimbursed, some you pay. A mutuelle means you may not pay anything, you’ll be fully reimbursed. That also goes for things like prescriptions, consultancy fees, and operations. If you have a medical condition that requires frequent healthcare support, a mutuelle could save you a lot of money and a lot of form filling.
4. If you are retiring to France, will your requirements change?
If you are moving to France in order to retire there, it will be worth thinking about the health cover that you may require as you grow older. With advancing age, requirements that you have not considered can become vitally important, so it is important to think thoroughly about what you might need in future before you purchase health insurance.
This advice from a health insurance professional aims to help you gain peace of mind when considering moving to France. These are just a few key points relating to a very large industry in France. However, they represent the main things to consider when choosing a health insurance provider, especially if you are considering retirement in France.
