The French government has decided to extend a special tax on private health insurance companies and mutuals, which was first introduced as a temporary measure. This surtax, set at 2.05%, will be added to the existing additional solidarity tax (TSA), which is currently 13.27% for responsible insurance contracts and 20.27% for other types of coverage. The government says this move is necessary because the share of healthcare and medical goods funded by the national Health Insurance has grown since 2012, from 77.1% to 79.4% in 2024. Meanwhile, the portion covered by complementary organizations has slightly decreased, from 13.1% to 12.8% over the same period. The government aims to reduce the deficit of the Health Insurance system. This decision is likely to cause tension with the complementary organizations, which have already faced a transfer of financial responsibilities this summer. These changes will take effect from January 1, 2027. The Health Insurance will reduce its reimbursement for certain medicines with low or moderate effectiveness, such as Spasfon, to just 5%, which will increase the financial burden on mutuals. Additionally, the Health Insurance will reimburse only 50% of dental care costs, down from 60%, leaving the remaining 50% to be covered by complementary insurers. The government has set a goal of cutting the Health Insurance deficit in half. Alongside the surtax and these financial transfers, about 400 million euros in savings are planned in the hospital sector in 2027, similar to the amount planned this year. In March, the daily hospital fee and the emergency patient fee were increased to 23 euros each, up from 20 and 19.61 euros respectively. These fees are not covered by the Health Insurance and are usually paid by patients, though they are generally covered by mutuals under responsible contracts. This morning, the Minister of Health, Stéphanie Rist, announced a 1.6 billion euro financial contribution expected from mutuals and health insurance companies. Combined with other savings, such as 2 billion euros from sick leave and 4.1 billion euros from pension payments, the government hopes to nearly halve the Social Security deficit, bringing it down to 12.7 billion euros in 2027, compared to 22.6 billion this year. However, the 1.6 billion euro figure seems low, as the financial transfers planned for January 1, 2027, have been estimated at 1.5 billion euros by the French Mutualism. The organization’s general director, Séverine Salgado, estimates the actual financial burden on mutuals to be more than 3 billion euros, with the surtax expected to yield only 1.2 billion euros next year. Regardless of the surtax extension, 2027 is expected to see significant price increases for complementary health insurance. On September 21, the Addactis barometer predicted a median increase of 8% for individual insurance plans and 8.3% for company group contracts.