Starting Sunday, March 2, 2026, higher daily fees for hospital stays and visits to hospital emergency departments are in effect in France. The daily rate for hospitalization (forfait hospitalier) has increased from €20 to €23, and the fee for the ER (forfait urgence) has risen from €18 to €20. These hikes were announced by the national health insurance fund Assurance Maladie to increase funding for the public health service. Experts predict that the increased costs will most likely be passed on to patients through higher premiums for private supplementary insurance (mutuelle). The decision aims to counter the rising operational costs of hospitals, though it raises concerns about additional financial burdens for patients.
New Rates from March 2
The daily hospitalization fee (forfait hospitalier) has been raised from €20 to €23. The fee for a visit to a hospital emergency department (forfait urgence) has increased from €18 to €20. The changes came into effect on Sunday, March 2, 2026.
Forecasted Premium Increases
Representatives of the private health insurance sector (mutuelle) warn that the increase in hospitalization costs will be passed on to patients through premium hikes. This particularly concerns covering extra fees charged by private doctors above the state-reimbursed rate.
Goal: Hospital Funding
The fee increases aim to boost funding for the public health service in the face of rising hospital operating costs, linked to inflation and energy prices. The funds are deemed necessary to maintain the quality and accessibility of medical care.
Hospital Fee Mechanism
The daily hospitalization fee is charged to the patient for each day of stay in a hospital, both public and private. However, after 30 days, its amount is capped at €20 per day. The ER fee is fixed regardless of the scope of tests performed.
In France, increases in two key fees related to using the health service have come into force. Starting Sunday, March 2, 2026, a higher daily rate applies for hospital stays and for visits to hospital emergency departments. Forfait hospitalier, the daily hospitalization fee, has been increased from €20 to €23. Simultaneously, the fee for a visit to the emergency department – the forfait urgence – now costs €20 instead of the previous €18. The changes were announced by the national health insurance fund Assurance Maladie. The hospital fee mechanism stipulates that after 30 days of hospitalization, its amount is capped at €20 per day, providing some protection for patients requiring long-term care. The fee hikes are a direct response to the rising costs of operating the French health service. Public and private hospitals are facing inflationary pressure, higher energy costs, and a general increase in operational expenses. As sources indicate, the additional funds raised from the fees are to be allocated to financing and modernizing medical facilities, which is intended to maintain the quality and accessibility of care for all citizens. The French healthcare system, based on the Bismarck model, is funded mainly through social contributions and taxes. Patients use universal insurance (Sécurité sociale), which covers a significant part of treatment costs, but supplementary insurance (mutuelle) and a co-payment (ticket modérateur) are often also required. Fees like the forfait constitute another element of costs borne directly by the patient. However, experts and representatives of the insurance sector point to the broader consequences of this decision. Primarily, they emphasize that the increase in hospitalization costs will most likely impact patients' wallets in the longer term. French private health funds, known as mutuelle, signal that they will be forced to pass on the additional burdens to their members. This means a predictable increase in premiums in the near future. As explained by a spokesperson for one of the health fund federations, quoted by BFMTV: „„Ces coûts seront répercutés sur les patients”” — Spokesperson for a federation of health funds. This mechanism particularly concerns covering so-called honoraires dépassements, i.e., extra fees charged by some doctors and private clinics above the state-reimbursed rate. The Assurance Maladie decision fits into a broader trend of adjusting healthcare funding to current economic challenges. Similar fee adjustments have occurred in the past, for example in 2023. Authorities emphasize that these measures are necessary to maintain the system's stability, but they may increase financial pressure on households at a time when many French people are already feeling the effects of high living costs.