Social Security in France

THE SOCIAL SECURITY

IN FRANCE

If you go to France, you have to know that the Social Security system is prossibly different from the your country. Before leaving your country and to be covered during the first months, you must apply at the social security in our home country asking for the European Health Insurance Card (if you are from Europe), which is valid for one year. With it you will be covered at any hospital for free (costs will be paid by your home state). 

 This card will be very practical for the installation period in France, because until we have our number installed and French security pass some time with paperwork and bureaucracy.

Social security schemes in France:

There are many schemes in France (régimes obligatoires), you have to work with the category to which you belong. 

• General regime (régime générale), for employees, covering more than 80% of the population.
• Autonomous regime (régimes autonomes) for self-employed than agricultural or professionals
• Agricultural regime (régimes agricoles) for people working in agriculture.
• Special regime (régimes spéciaux) for specific categories such as domestic staff.

We will focus on the general arrangements only, as is common for foreigners who come to work in France. 

First steps:

To have a French Social Security number, you can simply go to work there. The company should take to register for the URSSAF (Union des Recouvrements Sécurité Sociale et cotisations of d'Allocations Familiales) www.urssaf.fr.   As a special mention, you need a few things to be affiliated: Birth certificate translated into French (you can order online at your country); and a bank RIB (proof of your bank account in France).

One registered, you will receive a certificate of membership in the social security system with your social security number and your Carte Vitale. You will need to go to the local CAM (Caisse d'Assurance Maladie Primaire), which will be your contact with the social security system.  Your Local CPAM depends on where you reside and is easy to find out in line at www.ameli.fr. 

The general scheme (régime générale) covers social insurance for you and your family (wife and children), for the followings cases:

1. disease
2. maternity
3. industrial accidents and occupational diseases
4. disabled
5. cenilismo and widowers
6. death
7. unemployment insurance
8. supplementary pension

Foreing workers seconded to France for a company which is registered outside France, are usually not subject to the france medical system. Such employees maintain their own social security system, unless they are from a country with which France has a bilateral treaty.

Sample Vital Card (Carte Vitale):

Visit the doctor:

Once we have our Social Security number, we have to choose our family doctor (you can choose even without having received our vital card). This is a private general practitioner, and we can choose according to their proximity to our home / work, or that we have recommended, ... This doctor will have to accept on their patient list (if space available). In France there is outpatient clinics so that general practitioners have their consultations in private homes, or several of them gather to install your queries in the same building. 

 This is an advantage in the sense that we can choose the doctor who you want for yourself. The downside is that after the consultation we will pay the price for it, which typically ranges between 23 and 30 euros for a standard consultation normally. The doctor will ask for your vital card (green card health), to notify Social Security that you have paid that amount. If at first you have not received your vital card, he will give you a paper to be sent to your center CPAM. 

After a few days (3 to 7 days) we will be paid into your bank account approximately 70% of the amount paid. This is automatic as you submitted the carte vitale in the consultation.  

The "mutuelles" or mutual insurance :

In order to receive the other 30% (the percentage is approximate and varies depending on the consultation) you must have private health insurance with a mutual "mutuelle". According to the company you work for and the position / category, it is very common that the same company will offer this insurance with a "mutuelle" associated. If not, you can always ask your bank, which will offer the services of a major insurance company.

According to the coverage of the insurance, you can also go to a certain annual amount for dentists, opticians, and free medications. 

As dentists have been mentioned, you can go directly to any dentist. There is no difference between public and private as any you choose, it will be refunded by social security and partly by the mutual (if available).

If we want to visit a specialist, you must pass before by your family doctor, who sent you to the appropriate specialist, which will generate twice the costs to be paid (two visits).

Conclusions:

As an advantage over others systems is that doctors are not as saturated as it only support certain quota, they don't use to be visited by bored old people (and not sick).

The obvious disadvantage is having to advance expenses and pay with our wallets. 

You can find some exceptions in the process of paying for the consultation, as for some doctors is enough if you present to them the Carte Vitale (it is not necessary to pay), and others just make you pay the amount that would correspond to the insurance. 

By Miguel Angel Aisa