Orpea case: the government will publish the investigation report within "a few days"

Europe 1 with AFP 5:41 p.m., March 29, 2022

After the edifying revelations of journalist Victor Castanet in his book "Les Fossoyeurs", it is the government's turn to shed light on the Orpea affair.

The government will finally publish within "a few days" the administrative investigation report on Orpea, which points to "serious dysfunctions" within the Ehpad group, said Tuesday the Minister Delegate for the Autonomy of the Elderly , Brigitte Bourguignon.

"I have decided with (the Minister of Health) Olivier Véran to publish the report within a few days, taking care of course to conceal the parts which must be, if Orpea still confirms that it does not want to completely lift the secret. of business", said Ms. Bourguignon, during a hearing at the Senate's Social Affairs Committee.

“serious malfunctions”

This report, drawn up by the General Inspectorate of Finance (IGF) and that of Social Affairs (Igas), was submitted to the government last week.

He points to "serious dysfunctions" within Orpea, which led the executive to take legal action.

However, the government had indicated that it would not be made public.

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"The government has never objected to the publication of the inspection report, only the Orpea group can prevent it, in particular on the basis of business secrecy," said Ms. Bourguignon on Tuesday, who asked the CEO of Orpea, Philippe Charrier, to "remove business secrecy from the entire report".

236 establishments reported since February

The government had seized the IGF and the Igas at the beginning of February to shed light on the facts denounced by the journalist Victor Castanet in an explosive book, "Les Fossoyeurs".

The author accuses Orpea of ​​having set up a "system" to optimize its profits to the detriment of the well-being of residents and employees.

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After the publication of this book, the government also ordered an operation of control and investigation on the establishments which had known reports.

Between February and March, more than 236 reported establishments, "mainly from the Orpea group but also from other commercial nursing homes", were unexpectedly checked by the Regional Health Agencies, Ms. Bourguignon said on Tuesday.

"Several major dysfunctions have been identified, leading for 70 of them to injunctions or sanctions", going for some to the placement under provisional administration and to the closure, she indicated.