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The Assessment of Medical Technology: The Case of France

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 March 2009

Caroline Weill
Affiliation:
INSERM
Francis Fagnani
Affiliation:
INSERM
Christian LeFaure
Affiliation:
INSERM

Extract

The French health system is a complex organization that has developed since 1945 as the result of a subtle combination of two fundamental principles: liberal medicine — the freedom of both the consumers and the producers of care, and solidarity — universal access to health care — embodied in a quasi-generalized system of health insurance (4).

Today, this balance, to which the French are uncontestably dedicated, appears to be precarious. It has gradually become apparent that the financing system—80% of which is based on mandatory deductions and is intended to guarantee the balance between freedom of choice and universal access — is not consistent with the dynamic of health expenditures. The growing costs of care, as witnessed by the increase of health expenses as a percentage of total household expenses from 4.5% in 1950 to 13.3 in 1985, has led to increased state control over the health care system since 1975.

Type
Technology Assessment Reports
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1989

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References

REFERENCES

1.Etienne, J. P., Chantereau, S., & Cordier, A.Planification hospitalière. Collection des rapports officiels. Paris: Documentation Française, 1986.Google Scholar
2.Fuehrer, R. Policy for medical technology in France. In Banta, H. D. & Kemp, K. B. (eds.), The management of health care technology in nine countries, vol. 7. New York: Springer, 1982.Google Scholar
3.Moatti, J. P., Fagnani, F., & Weill, C.The diffusion and use of diagnostic imaging equipment in France: The limits of regulation. International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care, 1987, 3, 531–43.Google Scholar
4.Rodwin, V.The health planning predicament: France, Quebec, England, and the United States. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1984.CrossRefGoogle Scholar