Map: the 151 areas of France chosen to get more doctors from September

More GPs will be made available from September in 151 areas of France - including parts of Lot-et-Garonne, Dordogne, Creuse, Allier and Nièvre - under a government plan to address the issue of medical deserts. 

The 151 areas, which are all communautés de communes, were identified on a map published by the Ministry of Health on June 27. 

These areas are set to receive support from general practitioners up to two days per month, on a voluntary basis.

The scheme forms part of the pacte de lutte contre les déserts médicaux, announced by Prime Minister François Bayrou in April. 

One of its central measures is the launch of a mission de solidarité territoriale pour les médecins, aimed at reinforcing access to care in medical deserts.

The 151 zones are predominantly rural, with the majority located in the southern half of France, covering a total of 2.5 million residents.

Some departments are better represented, such as Dordogne (Nouvelle-Aquitaine), with nine Communauté de communes included:

• Vallée de la Dordogne et Forêt Bessède 

• Domme-Villefranche du Périgord

• Portes Sud Périgord

• Bastides Dordogne-Périgord

• Isle et Crempse en Périgord

• Pays de Saint-Aulaye

• Périgord Ribéracois 

• Dronne et Belle 

• Périgord Nontronnais

On the other hand, Eure (Normandy), which is one of the departments with the fewest doctors, has none.

The new zones, marked in red on the map below, were selected using data from the national health statistics agency DREES.

Plans to address medical deserts

Although described as a first step, the government acknowledges the measure will not resolve the problem of medical deserts, which, according to the Ministry of Health, affects 87% of France.

Local authorities are now working to identify consultation sites in each zone, with the aim of offering volunteer doctors suitable conditions in which to practise.

The initiative is being launched as a pilot phase, pending the adoption of related legislation currently under debate in parliament. 

A government-backed proposal from Senator Philippe Mouiller (Les Républicains) would allow doctors to be penalised if they refuse to take part in the territorial solidarity mission. 

The bill was adopted by the Senate in May but has not yet passed parliament. 

The healthcare plan also includes the deployment of fourth-year medical interns to understaffed regions around the country.