Wheelchairs issued to those with a disability or due to a loss of mobility are set to be 100% reimbursed by state healthcare from December 1 this year, President Emmanuel Macron has confirmed.
Mr Macron first pledged the measure at a National Disability Conference in April 2023. He had said it would be implemented in 2024, but he only confirmed it this week (on February 6, 2025).
He also said that the procedures to receive reimbursement would be shortened and simplified.
Speaking on social media platform TikTok, Mr Macron said that today (Friday, February 7), the “very large” list of all wheelchairs covered will be published in the Journal Officiel, confirming that “from December 1, wheelchairs will be reimbursed at 100% as promised”.
The video begins with questions from several wheelchair users, who state the high costs of wheelchairs, and ask the president “where are we?” with the equipment’s reimbursement. The president then responds.
Reimbursement will be possible after “prior agreement based on a doctor's opinion”, within a deadline of two months, the measure states.
The policy has long been mentioned by successive prime ministers. Gabriel Attal referred to it in his policy statement on January 30, 2024 and François Bayrou also said later that it would be implemented “in 2025”.
The measure has now been confirmed after significant negotiations between companies, unions, and other relevant parties.
‘Profound and revolutionary change’
After the most recent announcement, Charlotte Parmentier-Lecocq, Minister Delegate for Autonomy and Disability, told Le Monde: “This is going to be a profound and revolutionary change for the people concerned.
“Not only in financial terms because there will no longer be any out-of-pocket expenses, but also because we are going to simplify things in terms of deadlines, with a one-stop shop,” she said.
Similarly, Health and Work Minister Catherine Vautrin said on X (Twitter) that “coverage will be accompanied by a simplification of procedures and a reduction in delivery times”.
Currently, claiming for medical equipment such as wheelchairs can be complex and take up to two years, depending on the prescription issued, the person’s mutuelle, and communication with the local Maison départementale pour les personnes handicapées (departmental centre for the disabled).
The list of reimbursed models also includes additions and options such as headrests, anti-bedsore cushions, wheels for outdoor use etc, and the decree also sets a maximum sale price for each category.
Manufacturers will then be expected to adjust the price of their products to allow their users to be reimbursed for the purchase.
If certain models or additions prescribed by a health professional do not appear on the list, they may, under exceptional circumstances, be reimbursed by special request. The Assurance maladie will have two months to respond on whether it agrees.
Wheelchair use in France
There were between 1.08 and 1.13 million non-temporary wheelchair users in 2019, show figures from the Institut de recherche et documentation en économie de la santé (Irdes).
The institute states that most users are elderly, but the figure also includes some 253,000 people under the age of 65, including 22,500 children. Many of these younger users are affected by disabilities or neurodegenerative diseases, and often need more specific (and therefore more expensive) equipment.
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Around 150,000 wheelchairs are purchased every year, but they can be very expensive.
According to Régis Opfermann, representative of the Syndicat national de l'industrie des technologies médicales, who spoke to Le Monde:
A manual model can cost between €500 and €10,000 for a top-of-the-range/specialist model
Electric wheelchairs start at €3,400 and can cost up to €30,000 for a top/specialist model
Reimbursement by the national health insurance scheme currently ranges from €560 to €5,200 for the most advanced wheelchairs.
Almost 60,000 people in France still face costs of €1,000 or more for their wheelchairs, even after reimbursement at the current level by the Assurance maladie, states Irdes.
Some 34,000 people face much higher costs of €7,200 or more, the institute says.
Industry and user response
Some wheelchair users have said there is still uncertainty around the measure.
One MP, Sébastien Peytavie, who represents Dordogne and is in a wheelchair, has said that users are “still in the dark” about the funding of some specific products. “While we do not know the maximum sales prices, and whether there is a [funding] ceiling for prior agreement, we remain in the dark,” he said.
The President of the Union des fabricants d'aides techniques, Jean-Luc Marcelin, said that the measure is expected to cover 80% of the models used currently. He said that this could mean that around 10% of models are still considered too expensive to cover and that 10% of models could simply no longer be marketed in France.
Read also: Free wheelchairs do not go far enough, say French disability groups
He added that he was ready to “wait and see”, and hoped that the announcement would help revive the market, which has been “sluggish for over a year”.
Yet, the union has also said that it fears that the funding could be “undersized” and could lead to people who need the devices being prescribed shorter rental periods. Changing equipment rental agreements could threaten “thousands of jobs” in businesses that adapt, maintain, and repair wheelchairs, the union warned.
Laurence Tiennot-Herment, chair of the French muscular dystrophy association AFM-Téléthon who took part in discussions around the measure summed up the industry response on February 6, saying: “We welcome the reform. But the devil is always in the detail, and we want to make sure that no one is left out in the cold.”
