A bill was definitively approved by the Senate on Wednesday. Despite concrete progress, it is considered insufficient by elected officials from all sides, who are calling for a more ambitious bill.
A small step while waiting for a major text? The Senate definitively adopted the bill on “aging well” on Wednesday March 27, a week after the green light from the National Assembly. This compilation of measures, the result of a compromise between senators and deputies based on a text tabled by the presidential camp, aims to “building the society of healthy aging and autonomy”. Behind this title lie provisions praised for their usefulness, but criticized for their limited scope. “While it includes some interesting advances, this text cannot replace an overall strategy proposed by the government,” summed up Senator LR Philippe Mouiller, pleading, like so many other elected officials, for a bill on old age.
“We all want an ambitious reform to meet the challenge of aging”agreed Renaissance MP Annie Vidal, while defending her modest bill but “pragmatic”. In a hurry to act, the government has so far been content to support the initiative and include several of the measures in its plan to combat abuse unveiled on Monday. Franceinfo presents the content of this text to you.
Guaranteed visiting rights in hospitals and nursing homes
After the trauma experienced by many families during the Covid-19 crisis, the law will protect the right to receive visitors “each day” in healthcare establishments, as well as in places welcoming elderly people, those with disabilities or those suffering from chronic pathologies. This provision has until now been a matter of simple regulations.
“By enshrining this right in law, we give it more force.”
Annie Vidal, Renaissance deputy and co-rapporteur of the billat franceinfo
A visit cannot be refused “only if it constitutes a threat to public order” Or “a threat to the health of the resident” and that of other members of the establishment. On the other hand, for people “at the end of life” Or “whose condition requires palliative care”visiting rights will be unconditional, including in the event of a new pandemic.
A possibility of welcoming pets
Establishments for the elderly must guarantee their residents “the right to welcome their pets”. Their owners must, however, be able to“ensure their needs” in good hygiene and safety conditions.
A ministerial decree must still define the list of categories of domestic animals that can be admitted, as well as their maximum size. Each nursing home may oppose this measure, in the event of refusal expressed within the social life council, where the residents and staff of the establishment are represented.
A departmental body for reporting mistreatment
The text establishes in each department “a unit responsible for collecting, monitoring and processing reports of mistreatment” towards vulnerable adults. Any victim or witness can contact her, in particular through the unique number that already exists, 39 77.
Notable new feature: people subject to professional secrecy (caregivers, notaries, bankers, etc.) will be able to alert the unit without exposing themselves to disciplinary proceedings. In addition to its function of centralizing reports, the body led by the regional health agency will be responsible for transferring files to the competent authority and supervising the response to each alert.
Strengthened staff background checks
All personal service professionals, including home helpers, will be prohibited from practicing in the event of a final conviction for a crime or misdemeanor. This rule expands a measure that already applied in nursing homes and in various social and medico-social establishments and services.
Managers of structures may also be informed of other facts which do not appear in the criminal record of their staff, such as an indictment or a conviction contested on appeal.
“The objective is to prevent a rapist from continuing to work with vulnerable people for several years while awaiting the final judgment.”
Annie Vidalat franceinfo
“Employers will thus be able to take measures to remove the person involved, in particular by assigning them to a position that does not require contact with the public”, explains the MP. For Annie Vidal, this allows us to respond to a delicate balance between the principle of presumption of innocence and the precautionary principle. In certain cases, the removal may go as far as dismissal.
A professional card for home workers
Professionals working in the homes of elderly people and disabled people will be given a professional card, which can offer them certain “facilities”for example in terms of parking. “This form of recognition will essentially have a symbolic significance”however recognized UDI senator Jocelyne Guidez, co-rapporteur of the bill.
Working conditions could also be improved thanks to the experimentation in certain departments of flat-rate financing of home independence services provided. The latter are currently governed by a logic of hourly rates.
A one-stop shop for autonomy in each department
The text provides for the creation of a departmental autonomy service. He will have to “facilitate” the procedures of elderly people, disabled people and caregivers, “by guaranteeing that the services and assistance they benefit from are coordinated, that the continuity of their journey is ensured and that home care is supported, while respecting their wishes and in response to their needs”.
Strengthened monitoring of elderly or isolated people
Mayors will be entrusted with the mission of collecting, under conditions, the identity of elderly people or people with disabilities who benefit from financial benefits or who request certain social, medico-social and health services. The register created will allow them to“organize periodic contact” with this public, particularly in the event of a heatwave alert, but also “propose to these people actions aimed at combating social isolation”a situation sometimes conducive to abuse.
To help older people detect and react to the first signs of dependence, appointments will be offered from the age of 60 as part of a “early detection and loss of autonomy prevention program”. The bill adopted by Parliament finally ratifies the creation, in each department, of local support teams for technical aids. Already tested in several areas, these help people choose and use their wheelchair, their lift or their hearing aid, as well as to arrange their home according to their needs.