The health insurance reform voted in August 2004 aims at saving health insurance : keeping the universal, compulsory and jointly liable aspects, while fighting against waste and abuse, and acting in order for everybody's effort to lead to a welfare system balance.
Saving fundamental principles
Health insurance reform mainly aims at saving health insurance system by consolidating three of its fundamental principles :
- Equal access to treatment. This must be guaranteed for all citizens, regardless of their place of residence on national territory and income. It assumes the existence of a public and universal health service.
- Quality of treatment. Treatment provided by healthcare professionals is already of high quality, but the quality culture must be developed resolutely in the healthcare sector.
- Solidarity. Everyone must contribute to the health insurance scheme according to their income and receive on the basis of their needs.
Implementation of a key action plan
The fair and balanced increase in health insurance receipts requests everybody's effort to fight against abuse and waste. In this framework, in concrete terms, the reform is connected around three main ideas :
- Coordinated treatment pathway with referring doctor that every 16-year old and over insured person has chosen to be cured, followed and orientated within the healthcare system.
- Personal medical file which will contain medical information (allergies, exam results, current treatments and so on) ; constituted and updated by the doctor the insured person has chosen, this file will be computerized in the medical secret strict respect.
- New Vitale Card. It will have a photograph of the insured person ; it will become an access key to the personal medical file.
