France boosts health funding to offset public hospital crisis

TheThe French state will take on €10 billion of public hospital debt over the next three years as part of an emergency package unveiled by the government on Wednesday in response to months of protests in the health sector, reports FRANCE 24.

French hospital workers have been striking for months in protest over years of cutbacks they say have harmed care in a country with a public health system that was once the envy of the world.

In a bid to offset the crisis, prime minister Édouard Philippe unveiled an emergency package on Wednesday “that will allow hospitals to reduce their deficit and rapidly recover the means to invest”.

Starting in 2020, the state will take on €10 billion in debt owed by public hospitals over three years, Philippe said.

Hospitals’ health insurance budget will increase by €1.5 billion over the same period, the prime minister added.

Read more of this report from FRANCE 24.