"What we need is 40 billion": Public hospitals very worried before the 2026 Budget announcements

Savings, yes, but not all on healthcare. François Bayrou is presenting the government's 2026 budget this Tuesday, with a target of €40 billion in savings. And "everyone will have to make an effort," the Prime Minister has already warned. This is enough to worry the already struggling healthcare sector.

"Be careful, any form of cutbacks in public hospitals will have consequences," warned Arnaud Robinet, president of the French Hospital Federation and mayor of Reims, on RMC this Tuesday. He called for "reviewing the entire healthcare system," not just the public hospital system.

Under these conditions, there is no question of the public hospital reliving the same crisis, particularly in terms of recruitment, as before Covid .

"It's too easy to criticize public hospitals, which provide all public health services. 83% of patients coming to the emergency room go to public hospitals. I'm aware of the state's budgetary situation, but we shouldn't view public health solely through accounting lenses," insists Arnaud Robinet.

He recommends a 5-year vision with a reflection on "the efficiency and relevance of care, reviewing the pricing of certain procedures and the provision of care in the regions", in particular by transforming certain maternity units.

And while Emmanuel Macron announced a budget extension of 3.5 billion euros for the armed forces , Arnaud Robinet wants to include health in the army programming law: "In the event of conflict or crisis, public hospitals are the first establishments to be mobilized and this is a priority for our fellow citizens," he insists.

The situation is unlikely to improve, "as long as we leave incompetent politicians who don't know what's happening on the ground," Arnaud, an anesthesiologist in Pas-de-Calais and founder of the "Santé en Danger" collective, told RMC Story .

"We're talking about 40 billion in savings, but what we need is 40 billion for the public health system," insists the anesthesiologist.

"Arnaud Robinet is nice, but he's a centrist; it was his camp that organized all this. François Bayrou will always have a place to get proper treatment. I work in the mining area, in the Corons, a population that needs care, and we're going to tell them that it's always more difficult to treat them."

Ironically, it is from an annex of the Ministry of Health that François Bayrou is due to present his 2026 budget this Tuesday at 4 p.m.