By: U.J., STA
There are hundreds of thousands of illegal migrants in the country who are entitled to the same free health care as other residents. There have never been as many immigrants in the country as now, the head of the Office for Immigration and Integration says.
France struggles with a string of problems and the huge financial burden posed by migrants, especially those who reside in the country illegally. These illegals also put an excessive burden on the healthcare system, because France, uniquely in Europe, provides them not just with emergency care but all the basic healthcare that is available to any resident in the country.
According to information obtained by Le Figaro, there are currently more than 330 000 illegal immigrants in France, whose medical care costs the budget well over 1 billion euros, 1 billion and 61 million euros to be exact.
In its latest report on the 2021 finance bill on asylum, immigration, integration and citizenship, the Senate’s Legal Committee specifies that the state provides foreign nationals staying illegally in the country with access to specialised medical treatment and hospital care free of charge.
Statistics included in the report show that France boasts a growing number of irregular migrants, with health authorities currently registering over 330 000 people. According to figures published on 31 December 2019, 334,546 people received free healthcare services last year. This is a 5 per cent increase compared to the previous year, when the state provided free healthcare to 318,106 foreign nationals. It is still shocking, though, that the number of illegal migrants entitled to free medical care has doubled in the last fifteen years. The real figure is presumably much higher, as statistics only include those who have actually received free medical treatment.
This kind of support is unique in Europe, where – apart from France – only Belgium offers foreigners free access to healthcare services that are not limited to basic medical interventions in cases of emergency, Didier Leschi, head of the French Office for Immigration and Integration (OFII) says. The two countries issue long-term residence permits to those who are in need of medical care and claim to have no access to efficient healthcare services. France currently has over 30 thousand such foreign nationals, whose their residence permits can be renewed if they need additional treatments. The state subsidy provides full financial coverage if the patient does not have sufficient income.
According to OFII’s director, the majority of patients in question are from North Africa, but the benefit is also available to US citizens who do not have adequate social security coverage in their home country or do not want to run up a debt. There are also many Swiss citizens along the border who regularly visit France for medical treatments.
Given the extremely generous subsidies, it comes as little surprise that France is a also an extremely attractive destination for migrants. Speaking to the French magazine Marianne, OFII General Director Didier said there have never been as many immigrants in the country, relative to its population, as there are today.
He added that most irregular migrants come from North African countries, which can also be explained by France’s colonial past. France has a large number of immigrants from Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco. It means those countries send even more refugees because the larger the receiving community in the destination country, the more people come from French-speaking African countries. Many Georgian, Albanian and Afghan citizens also apply for asylum in France, according to Leschi, because they know that they enjoy a much greater level of protection there than anywhere else in Europe. According to the head of OFII, France is the ultimate refuge for many Afghan refugees because they will be accommodated there even after being expelled from all other European countries.
Didier Leschi said training programs should be expanded to reduce social disparities, making it easier for young immigrants with refugee status to enter the labour market and start working in areas where there are shortages.
However, an immigration policy based on family reunification has its own difficulties and dangers. It results in a large number of foreign nationals arriving in the country, who will then not be able to enter the labour market because they usually do not have any qualifications, or language skills for that matter. Eventually, they will only be in touch with their own community, which can easily lead to separatism, the migration expert believes.
According to Didier Leschi, cooperation between European countries is essential to regulate migration because they have common interests and similar problems. Migration can only be regulated through forced removals or voluntary return to the mainland. Leschi believes that immigrants who have not received a residence permit in the selected country would be better off accepting the voluntary return programme supported and organised by OFII, rather than face deportation.