INTERVIEW
"The current crisis, which is a health crisis, has revealed the subject of old age a little more." Guest Thursday morning of Europe 1, Dominique Libault, president of the High Council for the financing of social protection, returned on the track envisaged by the government to create a fifth branch with Social Security. This would be dedicated to the issue of dependence of the elderly and disabled. "Ultimately, it could cost 10 billion euros minimum," said the author of a recent report on the funding of loss of autonomy. "That's what it would take by 2030," he says.
A "rebalancing of spending"
"The objective is to prepare the unprecedented demographic evolution" which is announced in France. We expect "a tripling of the population over 85 years old between today and 2040", continues the specialist. A population that will need reception space, equipment but also nursing and support staff. Staff who today "need to be valued," said Dominique Libault.
"Ten billion is a lot, but today only 3%" of social security spending is devoted to this subject. "It would only bring this rate to 4%," he said. The specialist sees it as a "rebalancing of spending taking into account demographic changes". How to finance it, when the year 2020 will see the deficit of Social Security jump to 41 billion euros just for 2020?
A "consultation" is coming
"We thought we could repay the social debt in 2024. The current crisis puts us in a complicated situation", recognizes Dominique Libault. To respond, the government wants to extend the CSG and the CRDS, two taxes which were to disappear in 2024, to 2033. This will notably allow two billion euros to be spent on the future "fifth branch" of the Social Security. But there is still at least eight billion to find, therefore.
"The government has announced a concertation to see what other measures will be taken," said Dominique Libault. Who insists, however: "It is not all financial".