Recent adjustments in consultation fees aim to attract more doctors to private practice, with general practitioners’ fees rising to 30 euros from December 22. Most patients will see no financial impact due to insurance coverage. Fee increases will also apply to specialists, with a focus on enhancing care quality. In exchange for these adjustments, doctors must meet specific patient care objectives. The initiative is projected to cost Health Insurance significantly in the coming years while improving healthcare access.
Boosting Private Practice with Increased Consultation Fees
The primary aim behind the recent fee adjustments is to attract more doctors to establish private practices, enhancing the overall appeal of their work. Starting Sunday, December 22, general practitioners will see their consultation fees rise to thirty euros. Fortunately, this hike will not affect most patients, as they will continue to receive the same level of reimbursement as before.
These fee increases stem from a new agreement forged in June between Health Insurance and private doctors’ unions, outlining their collaborative relationship for the years 2024-2029. The agreement emphasizes ‘significant revaluations’ for medical practitioners, deemed essential due to inflation, while also demanding collective commitments aimed at improving healthcare access and ensuring ‘relevance and quality’ of care, according to the National Health Insurance Fund (Cnam).
Details of the Fee Increases and Their Impact
Effective this Sunday, the reference consultation fee for general practitioners will increase from 26.50 to 30 euros. Additionally, the fee for a ‘one-off consultant’s opinion’—which compensates specialists for their expertise at the request of a general practitioner—will rise from 56.50 to 60 euros. This initiative is particularly aimed at incentivizing general practitioners, who currently attend to approximately one million patients daily.
For the majority of French citizens, these changes won’t significantly affect their finances, as Health Insurance covers 70% of these fees, with complementary insurance covering the remaining 30%. Patients will still need to pay a two-euro co-payment, which caps at fifty euros per year. However, it’s important to note that about 4% of the French population lacks complementary health insurance and will consequently face an increase in their out-of-pocket expenses.
In addition to general practitioners, other specialists will also see fee increases phased in over time. For instance, consultations for pediatric psychiatry will rise to 67 euros on Sunday, with a further increase to 75 euros on July 1, up from the previous rate of 54.70 euros. This service is available for patients up to 25 years old.
In pediatrics, the fees for mandatory consultations for children requiring a doctor’s certificate will increase to 54 euros on Sunday and then to 60 euros on July 1, from the current rate of 47.50 euros. Furthermore, a new ‘pediatric expertise’ consultation will be introduced for children up to 16 years old, priced at 60 euros, aimed at enhancing early detection of developmental disorders.
Psychiatrists will see their standard consultation fee rise to 55 euros on Sunday and eventually to 57 euros, up from the current 51.70 euros. Increases are also set for other specialists, including medical gynecologists, geriatricians, and neurologists, among others.
Looking ahead, starting in 2026, general practitioners will receive a ‘treating physician flat rate’—an additional payment beyond standard consultations—tailored to their patient demographics, with a particular focus on elderly, vulnerable, or chronically ill patients. For example, the annual follow-up of a patient over 80 years with a long-term condition will be valued at 100 euros.
The agreement also streamlines and enhances financial assistance for physicians who establish practices in underserved areas or hire medical assistants to accommodate more patients. This initiative is projected to incur an additional 950 million euros in expenses for Health Insurance in 2025, escalating to 1.6 billion euros in the long term.
In exchange for these financial improvements, doctors are committing to achieve ‘ten quantified objectives’ aimed at improving patient care, including reducing the number of long-term condition patients without a treating physician to 2% and increasing their patient base by 2% annually. Furthermore, they will undertake fifteen action programs aimed at enhancing the relevance and quality of care. An observatory will track these results, with updates published online quarterly, starting from the first quarter of 2025.