Cost of having a Baby in France (2020)

[russellclow]

Hi all,

I am new to the forums, so I hope this it the right place to ask! I've searched through the forums for an answer, but couldn't find the information I was looking for.

Myself and my wife live in South France. WE both have applied for Carte Vitale's, but so far have not received anything. We are thinking of trying for a baby later this year, and simply paying for the healthcare upfront (we will be getting private health insurance but will only cover the final part of the pregnancy).

I've searched everywhere, but can't see to find information on the FULL costs for the scans, blood test and ongoing visits/checkups. If we can time it right, we would expect to be paying for everything in full up to around the 7-8 month mark, at which point the health insurance will kick in. Does anyone know where I can find the costs for all the scans, visits and checks needed within the first 8 months of pregnancy? Or anyone done similar and can share some prices you paid?

Thanks!
Russ

I'm not sure you can find this information online easily.
Because most people are covered 100% of the fixed fees once the pregnancy is declated to the state, they don't worry about what the fixed fees are. They just want to know what will be extra if they use a private clinic.
You can ask at the hospital/clinic the costs of consultations with the gynaecologist. You could try asking at the lab the cost of the blood test but it depends on what they are testing for. Although some things are standard, some depends on what tests the doctor prescribes. You could also ask the cost of medical imaging at your local inaging centre.
I would be prepared for a lot of surprised reactions when you ask these costs.
Good luck!

Are you in employment?

By the way, you will be covered by the state once you have a social security number. (Attestation de droits) The carte vitale itself can take a while to come after this. I know someone who waited over a year!

I would be chasing your carte vitale with the CPAM office. It's not just the cost of the pregnancy and the birth you would need to pay for, but also when the child is born you would need to pay any associated costs for check ups/vaccinations etc - if you have provided everything they need perhaps just need a bit of a nudge? In my experience any French admin needs chasing, in person - they don't really respond to email or phone calls very often! Good luck.

Are you working? If so you must legally be affiliated to a "caisse" even if you don't yet have your carte vitale, and you will be able to claim 70% of insured expenses (100% from 6 months of pregnancy).

It is fairly easy to find the costs of common procedures online assuming your provider applies the govt approved rates. Healthcare in France is not expensive (much cheaper than UK private care) esp outside Paris.

I can't answer the question directly but to give you an idea of costs, I pay 45€for a gyne/obs appointment.
Hospital birth 13 yrs ago with some complications came to around 10k€

I arrived to France while pregnant in 2019.
The cost of med appointments, scans, etc. varies depending if you go to a clinic, or a hospital or to a practitioner. Here are the prices of all my appointments (also in the south of France) at a top maternity clinic to give you a rough estimate:

Cost of GP visit: 48€
Cost of obgyn visit: 58€
Cost of scan: 110€
Cost of lab analyses: varies from 25 to 150€ depending on the type of analysis
Birth: 600€ including three nights in private room

If you are already working with a French contract and have applied for the carte vitale, the CPAM will pay the state part of all the cost incurred since you started working. You might not receive your carte vitale now, but you will receive a provisional number in one or two months, so you can start the reimbursement process. It can take a few months, for instance, I claimed in September the reimbursement of the appointments paid upfront in July and got the money back in December.

The state pays around 30€ for the obgyn appointments, most of the lab tests are paid 100% and I think the scans are paid 100% as well. The birth was paid almost in full, I think they didn't paid the cost of the private room.
The rest of the costs are to be paid either by you or your mutuelle. For the mutuellle, it depends on your contract. Mine covers 100% of the cost incurred during maternity. You need to pay 1€ or so for some appointments and that cannot be reimbursed.

I hope it helps, once you get all the paperwork sorted out the process is quite straightforward. I found that the French system is complicated but delivers a better service than the NHS.