According to the 2019 health survey published Thursday by the OECD, French hospitals provide "high quality care".

France has a good health system, marked in particular by the "high quality" care delivered by hospitals, but the French smoke too much, drink too much and still consume too many antibiotics, according to the panorama of health 2019 published Thursday by OECD.

Health expenditure "represents just over 11% of GDP" in France, "one of the highest proportions of" the 36 countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which contributes to "good results" health, with a life expectancy of 82.6 years, "two years above average," according to the report.

"Access to healthcare is a strong point" of France

Hospitals provide "high-quality care", for example, the 30-day mortality rate following a heart attack, the 6th-lowest in the OECD.

And "access to care is a strong point" in France: the remaining dependents (fees paid directly by patients after reimbursement) represent "only" 2% of the final consumption of households, as in Slovenia and France. Luxembourg, at the top of the ranking.

But "there are concerns about limited access to doctors in underserved areas" that could aggravate, especially for generalists, future retirements related to the aging of the profession, says the OECD.

In this context, "new supportive roles for nurses, pharmacists and other professionals can reduce the workload of physicians (...) without compromising the quality of care".

One in four adults smoke daily

Moreover, the French still have unhealthy lifestyles: one in four adults (25.4%) smoke daily, the fourth highest rate in the OECD, while alcohol consumption in France is the third highest in the area. "More than 75,000 people died in France in 2015 from preventable causes of death through prevention, such as lung cancer or alcohol-related causes," he said.

Finally, "antibiotic prescriptions in the primary care sector are about 25% higher than the OECD average," while overconsumption of these products makes them less effective.