9 out of 10 French people want the Government to make the financing of autonomy a budgetary priority –

According to a survey conducted by Fédésap and Opinion Way, the French want the State to tackle the issue of aging in place head-on and finance Personal Services to meet the needs of the sector. This recent study focuses on the relationship of the French with the loss of autonomy. A subject however largely absent from a social security financing bill (PLFSS), adopted in force through 49.3. Conducted by the Opinion Way Institute for the Federation of Personal and Local Services (Fédésap), the study brings to light the concerns of the French, while the crises that the country is going through relegate the question of support to the political agenda background.

Autonomy: an important subject for the French

The conclusion is clear : less than half of French people (47%) currently trust the public authorities to offer concrete solutions, with a low impact on family budgets, for the management of loss of autonomy. They are an overwhelming majority (91%) to want the development of public funding of support systems, which today continues to weigh in their portfolio.

While the outlines of the PLFSS are in the process of being adopted and the issue of home care is only too little addressed, the French are 95% to estimate that the management of their loss of autonomy will be more and more complicated. Worse, 2 out of 3 are anxious about the devices they or their loved ones could benefit from in the event of a loss of autonomy. They also all believe (96%) that the management of a person with a loss of autonomy should never be done alone and consider (94%) that the loss of autonomy of a loved one is one of the most most difficult they may face in their lives.

The French face a complex reality

The French perceive that the lack of means to help and support people with loss of autonomy is glaring : 79% (8 interviewees out of 10) believe that they would not have the means to be properly cared for if they found themselves in a situation of loss of autonomy tomorrow. Among those who have already taken care of, or are currently taking care of, a person with a loss of autonomy, 9 out of 10 (88%) would have liked or would like to be able to rely more on assistance and support systems at home to cope. Faced with these difficult situations, it is thanks to the professionalism of home help and the sense of responsibility of companies in the sector that home care remains of high quality in France, as recognized by three quarters of respondents who have already appeal to SAADs.

Otherwise, the job of home help is considered difficult by all (95%) of respondents, while all (96%) consider it essential. The home help professions thus suffer from the ambivalent reputation specific to the care professions: we know that they are as essential as they are trying.

Fédésap’s proposals

In this emergency context, Fédésap considers that it is time to seriously strengthen the current system for taking care of dependency by putting forward several concrete proposals, namely:

1. The release of real funding in particular in order to carry out the necessary dynamic revaluation of the national APA/PCH basic tariff, in particular in the face of inflation which is having a severe impact on professionals in the sector and the pressing need to revalue salaries. The government does not seem to want to propose a law on old age, but the sector will not be able to do without a new legal framework allowing it to record the means and amounts of sustainable funding. It is therefore imperative that the public authorities and Parliament take up the matter. The lacunar nature, in this area, of the social security financing bill currently under debate, alarms professionals in the sector.
2. The positioning of the SAADs as pivots of the policy of autonomy. The start of setting up a coordinated care management system, via departmental services acting as a one-stop shop for families, has made it possible to begin to offer an individualized approach to the service offer. However, it is essential to continue and expand this approach, of which the home help and support services are at the heart. It is obvious that the “domiciliary shift” in the autonomy policy cannot take place without the home help and support services, which will tomorrow be set up as Autonomy Services that can provide assistance and care.
3. Official recognition by the public authorities of the local care sector. Respected and appreciated by the French, the professions of personal assistance must henceforth benefit from recognition to match. Beyond the need to enhance the attractiveness of these professions, other measures that do not weigh on public finances must be taken. In this respect, National Home Help Day (March 17), proposed by Fédésap and announced by Minister Jean-Christophe Combe on September 22, is a first step and a positive sign of the Government’s desire to promote the community care sector. Other founding signs could also make it possible to testify to the Nation’s recognition of these front-line workers, such as the endowment of a professional card. The latter, in contexts of transport crisis, fuel shortage, etc., would allow them to be recognized by all for their social usefulness, in the same way as caregivers, paramedics or firefighters.