"Let him take care of the OQTF": Retailleau still wants a reform of the AME and annoys the central bloc

The return of the AME reform. During a trip to Seine-et-Marne on Wednesday, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau (and president of the LR party) called for a review of the conditions of State Medical Aid, which allows undocumented foreigners to access free care, for the next budget.

Bruno Retailleau justified his proposal: "This budget must be fair. To be fair, it must concern those who contribute, but even more so those who do not contribute, and even more so those who come illegally to our country."

The Interior Minister is proposing, in particular, to create an "entry ticket" to access AME (Medicare for Medical Assistance). Such a measure was implemented in 2011, under Nicolas Sarkozy , then abolished with the arrival of François Hollande the following year. At the time, it was necessary to pay €30 to benefit from AME. But according to a 2015 parliamentary report, this measure had pushed beneficiaries to seek treatment later and "ultimately, to an increase in costs."

And Bruno Retailleau's speech is seriously irritating within the central bloc. A former Modem minister fumes: "We didn't wait for Bruno Retailleau to deal with AME, he should deal with expelling foreigners under OQTF (Order of Foreigners Allowance ).

A close friend of Edouard Philippe is also tired of seeing this debate on AME come up every year... "It's not up to scratch, waving this red flag is like chasing the RN," whispers this Horizon MP.

All cite reports published on the subject by members of the LR party... with the same conclusion: the AME can be adapted, but only marginally.

Bruno Retailleau also wants to increase the stamp duty, which is required for administrative procedures to apply for a residence permit. According to him, it should be raised to bring it back into line with the average amount in the rest of Europe, which would save €160 million.