Paris (AFP)
The Secu 2020 budget, presented Monday, includes measures to lower the price of wheelchairs for people with disabilities, including allowing reimbursement by health insurance of used equipment.
It is "to offer a range of wheelchairs and diversified prices more attractive," said in a statement the office of the Secretary of State for People with Disabilities, Sophie Cluzel.
To do this, the government will introduce a new procedure of "selective referencing" chairs eligible for reimbursement by Social Security, which should lead to a "competition" manufacturers and therefore at lower prices.
In addition, the government intends to "promote the reuse" of second-hand wheelchairs, allowing them to be covered by health insurance and "developing a sector", which "will also reduce the environmental impact" of these equipments.
Reacting to these announcements, the association APF France Handicap told AFP that the people concerned "expect strong action on the prices of wheelchairs", reimbursed by Secu less than 600 euros while they can cost more than 3,000 euros.
The idea of a "competition" manufacturers should not lead to a "limited choice" of chairs, warned Malika Boubekeur, APF, especially as people with a disability need a chair adapted to their specific needs.
The creation of a chain of used chairs must be accompanied by security guarantees, including in terms of "traceability of spare parts" and "repair conditions", she added.
"It should not be that the disabled person is forced to take a second-hand chair for financial reasons, while it would not be his first choice," she said.
According to her, if the organizations that finance aid and the Departmental Houses of the disabled "prefer the purchase of second-hand technical aids, to the detriment of new purchases", there is a "risk of destabilizing the whole of the Faculty".
The 2020 budget of the "Sécu" includes another measure for people with disabilities: it is aimed specifically at the 550 or so adults with autism or any other type of disability, forced each year to "go into exile" "in a specialized institution in Belgium, lack of space in France.
To "end" these "separations suffered", the government will unlock 90 million euros over three years (including 20 million in 2020) to develop "alternative solutions to meet the needs of individuals and families", mainly in the regions most affected by these "exile" situations, the Ile-de-France, the Hauts-de-France and the Grand-Est.
In a brief statement, the National Union of Associations of Parents, People with Intellectual Disabilities and their Friends (Unapei) expressed its "interrogations" after the announcement of the government. "What is behind the word alternative, concretely?" Asked the association, which wonders if these ads will be enough to "meet the emergency" for families.
© 2019 AFP