These health establishments are invited to close their doors from November 14. According to liberal biologists, the amount of the requested savings would have increased on Monday during the meeting with health insurance.
by Zeliha Chaffin
The conflict between the government and the medical biology laboratories hardens. At the end of an appointment at the Headquarters of Maladie Monday, November 7, where they claim to have “struck a wall”, the representatives of liberal biologists called all the players in the sector at “A renewable strike” from Monday, November 14.
As of Monday, analysis laboratories are invited to close their doors for at least three days, as a sign of protest. No examination or sample will be carried out. In an emergency, patients will be redirected to the biology laboratories of clinical establishments or hospitals, which will remain open, we explain the Alliance of Medical Biology (ABM), at the origin of the call for mobilization. The latter, which brings together more than 90 % of players in the sector, estimates that participation should be massive. “It will be at least 90 % or even 100 % on our network,” confirms Michel Pax, Managing Director of the Group Les Biologists Independent (LBI), who has more than 650 analysis laboratories in France.
The profession has been on the war for more than a month. As part of the Social Security financing bill (PLFSS) – currently being discussion in the Senate -, the analysis laboratories have been ordered by the government to revise the prices of their current exams (outside COVID-19 screening tests).
high profitability of the sector
Anxious to reduce the bill for health expenses, the State, which is highlighting the high profitability of the sector in recent years, plans to impose on biology laboratories at least 250 million euros in savings in 2023. A one Plan that sparked the anger of biologists. “This will not only endanger major networks but also all independent laboratories. They already represent only 35 % of laboratories in France. This measure will accentuate their disappearance,” deplores Mr. Pax.
In reaction, the analysis laboratories had already ceased to transmit the data of testing tests of the COVID-19 since October 28, undermining the national follow-up of the epidemic, and suspended the sequencing of the tests, which Allows you to follow the emergence of new variants. Tensions were further accentuated at the start of the week. According to liberal biologists, the amount of the requested savings would have increased on Monday evening during the meeting with health insurance. It would now be, according to the ABM, from 280 million euros out of 2023, then 332 million per year from 2024 to 2026. The amounts disputed by health insurance, which specifies regret “deeply the call to strike” launched by liberal biologists.