France announces that it will stop financing homeopathy after 2021

A report by the French High Health Authority (HAS) has been decisive for the French government to make a transcendent decision: will stop financing homeopathic products the next January 1, 2021, that is, in just a year and a half.

Agnès Buzyn, Minister of Health, explained in an interview with Le Parisien that the report "is unfavorable to the maintenance of the refund of homeopathy I always said that I would follow the opinion of the HAS and, therefore, I have decided to start the process to completely stop the reimbursements ".

The research carried out by the French High Health Authority focused on the effects of homeopathy on a total of 24 health problems, from anxiety to oncology, through respiratory infections. The report is blunt: "Homeopathic medicines they have not proven scientifically to be effective as to justify a refund. "

Year and a half term

The HAS deepens in the lack of evidence to demonstrate the efficacy of these drugs not only to cure diseases, but also in the impact they have on the quality of life of patients. According to Buzyn, "they have not proven their interest in public health nor in the care of frequent pathologies ".

Therefore, the Minister of Health believes that "maybe we should work on the idea that it is not always necessary to take a medication" The measure will enter into force on January 1, 2021 and will not be done before to give a margin of time to both the homeopathic industry and patients who are accustomed to the current situation.

France has been reimbursing 30 percent of homeopathic medicines since 1984

France reimburses 30 percent of homeopathic medicines for more than 35 years, since the measure was introduced in 1984. Buzyn believes it is a good time to generate a debate on its use: "If homeopathy were useful, we would continue to reimburse it: we are already doing it with new, innovative and very expensive medicines, but whose cost we assume because they are effective ".