If spouse dies you may lose cover
It is possible to be excluded from healthcare due to the death of a spouse you were dependent on for healthcare rights
ONCE in the French healthcare system is it possible to be excluded due to the death of a spouse?
I am 65, hold a US passport, have never worked in an EU country, collect a state pension from both the US and Switzerland and have been covered under the French health care system since 2006 as a dependent of my husband who is 68 and a Dutch national.
The Netherlands recently decided to eliminate all pension survivor benefits. I am concerned about what would happen if I survive him. M.V.
Yes, it is possible to be excluded from healthcare due to the death of a spouse you were dependent on for healthcare rights. However, in your case you would seem to have two options to access French healthcare.
In the first case, although Switzerland is not in the EU, there is a reciprocal agreement between the two for healthcare purposes and a person with a Swiss state old age pension is entitled to an E121, which in turn could entitle you to healthcare in France.
Secondly, you have been a regular, legal resident in France for more than five years, which entitles you to apply to your prefecture to prove your right to be considered a “permanent resident,” which in turn allows you to join French healthcare under the couverture maladie universelle (CMU) system.
