"The vulnerable of yesterday are the sacrificed today"

Agnès Maurin, director of the League against Obesity, if a decree taken by the State at the end of August is attacked leaving workers -

• Between May and the end of August, chronic patients with cancer, heart disease or obesity were among the vulnerable workers, and as such could apply for partial unemployment.

• Since a decree of August 29, this is no longer the case.

  What infuriates many patient associations.

  Including the League against Obesity, which lodged an appeal with the Council of State.

• The latter auditioned the League this Friday and should render his decision in the coming days. 

  20 Minutes

   questioned the director of the League to understand the stakes of this decision.

How to protect the most fragile?

While the rebound of the epidemic is confirmed in France, several patient associations have been criticizing for weeks a decree which leaves a large number of chronic patients out of partial unemployment.

This Friday morning, the Council of State examined the appeal filed by the League against Obesity against this decree dated August 29.

questioned the co-founder and director of the League against Obesity, Agnès Maurin, on the reasons for this appeal and the consequences of this decree.

What has this decree of August 29 changed?

A decree published on May 5 qualified a certain number of pathologies as making the employees concerned more vulnerable than the average French.

That is to say, they were more likely to develop a severe form of Covid-19.

Employees with heart disease, diabetes, cancer, cystic fibrosis and obesity, for example, could request, if they wished, partial activity.

This decree also made it easier for those who wanted to work to convince their employer to telework.

The decree of August 29, on the sly, cancels this device.

Since then, a collective of individual people has arisen, the Vulnerable, of which we are not part, but which we support.

We also published a column, “Let's not forget the vulnerable workers…”, signed by more than 50 associations and patient groups, including France Assos Santé, the League against cancer, Alliance rare diseases…

What are the consequences of this decree?

Since August 31, many chronic patients fall outside the definition of "vulnerable people".

And a very small part remains protected.

For example, only certain cancers.

For the obese, only those with diabetes and over 65 may not work, but in general they are retired!

This shows that we are in an economic approach: it's back to school, everyone is back to work!

This is absurd.

We do not know what criteria they used to define those who are fragile and others.

However, an opinion from the High Council for Public Health recalls that vulnerable people are always the same.

We are very angry.

Without knowing why, yesterday's vulnerable are today's sacrificed.

On obesity in particular, what are the risks?

In March, the High Authority of Health (HAS) had defined as a risk criterion a body mass index (BMI) greater than 40, then it lowered it to 30. A number of French and international studies prove that fragile people are those who are affected by chronic diseases, including all forms of obesity.

A study from the University Hospital of Lille reveals that two thirds of patients in intensive care are in a situation of obesity.

Another study from Pompidou Hospital (AP-HP) which dates from September underlines that mortality is twice as high regardless of age in obese patients.

Knowing that in this disease, we often have psychological disorders… I am not telling you in what state our patients are!

They go back to work with a ball in their stomachs.

Do you have an estimate of the cost of this partial unemployment scheme?

The cost of sheltering we don't have it.

Either way, the financial argument is not good.

Hospitalizations in real time have a cost and that is where we are heading.

It is much more expensive than paying people on sick leave.

In addition, other people benefit from partial unemployment and not for medical reasons ...

France is facing a second wave.

Should we not make teleworking compulsory for vulnerable employees?

This is part of the proposals we have made.

We could have supported the return to work, made telework compulsory when possible, isolate them in an office, offer psychological support, transport assistance if necessary.

We are in total inconsistency!

For months, chronic patients have been told to “be careful!

".

Today, the Ministry of Health argues that the curve of hospitalizations in intensive care is lower than in March.

But in reality, it is at the same height as in May, when the first decree was made.

Why did you file an appeal?

On September 24, we filed a “freedom summary” and an “appeal for excess of power” to the Council of State.

We were auditioned this morning (Friday), the League against Obesity and three individuals.

These people are afraid, lost, sometimes depressed.

We have the impression that society no longer wants to protect them.

We no longer count on national solidarity, which had been the big word during confinement.

The president's “whatever the cost”, which is often cited, but which was very real for chronic patients ...

What do you expect from the Council of State?

That the decree of August 29 be annulled.

If so, we go back to the old decree.

We should have the answer early next week.

Knowing that with the epidemic peak, the State will perhaps make decisions for vulnerable people without even waiting for the decision of the Council of State.

The government assures us that we must try to set up a “bubble” around the most vulnerable, so why this decree?

More generally, should other measures be needed to protect the most vulnerable workers in the face of this Covid-19?

Of course !

We made other proposals, for example involving the human resources department, informing occupational medicine so that the person is integrated in good conditions, requesting mediation with a conciliation body if there is a dispute between the employer and employee under the aegis of occupational medicine.

All this is not planned.

If the person does not fight on their own, nothing happens.

The state ensures that these people can request a work stoppage.

But it is at the discretion of the doctor.

The patient must still consult.

However, obesity is not considered a chronic disease, so people are less likely to request and obtain time off work.

All the time, they hear themselves say that it is their fault ...

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