A Tragic Tale of French Health Rights Lost… and Regained
Text message…
This is the third text today with similar content. Definitely spam. Straight to bin!
Email…
Really? Do they think that a streetwise gal like me will fall for their scams? Binnit innit!
Email x 3 on separate days…
Pffffffff. Do they think I’m stupid? Straight to bin.
A week later…
… my carte Vitale was rejected chez le doc. “Strange…but probably the machine playing up/internet connexion” we decided.
Two weeks later…
… same problem à la pharmacie. “Bizarrrrrre” said I.
Three weeks later…
… my card was rejected a third time. Time to call the CPAM to tell them they’d made a mistake. (I’m a French resident, married to a French man, tax resident….I know my rights)
Telephone conversation
“Madame. On vous a envoyé plusieurs emails vous dirigeant sur votre espace. Vous n’avez pas répondu, on vous a donc retiré vos droits et vous a effacé du système.”
Quoi? What ‘espace’?
What’s going on?
In fact, the SECU/CPAM DOES send you emails (never texts) to inform you to visit your ‘espace’ for important info/updates.
In my case, it was asking for a kind of proof of life/continued residence in France for which they apparently do spot checks. Nothing to do with nationality, the gentleman from the CPAM assured me… but I’m not so sure.
Anyway, ignore this at your peril as you could lose your CV and rights to health care…and if you’re very unlucky, have to resend all the paperwork! Aie aie aie!
So, to be clear…
Once you have a social security (SS) number and are registered on the French health system, your medical matters are overseen by Ameli.fr, which automatically sets up an account for you (opt out system) and may periodically alert you by email about a message on their site.
The email sender’s address may be: assurance-maladie@info.ameli.fr
To access your account for such notifications, visit https://ameli.fr and click on “Se connecter”.
This may take you to a window which asks which service you require.
Either…
(login with your SS number – less the last 2 digits – and password)
This is where you’ll find messages (Notifications) from Ameli such as reminders about booster jabs, the annual update of your Carte Vitale or a spot check that you’re still alive! Best not to ignore them.
Log in regularly to your espace to check for messages, update or report any info relating to your carte vitale, change personal details, track payments, register a birth, apply for an EHIC…
Or…
(login with an “identifiant” and password).
This is a kind of digital health space launched in 2022 to allow French residents to manage their healthcare, store and exchange health information etc.
When a new document has been added by a medical professional, e.g. prescription, lab test results, scan/X-ray reports etc, you will receive a notification by email from ne-pas-repondre@monespacesante.fr
You can also download the app on Apple’s App Store and Google Play.
BONNE SANTÉ À TOUS ET TOUTES !
What is Ameli?
To be clear, it has nothing to do with bars, offices, or anything at all in Amélie les Bains
The acronym ‘ameli’ stands for ‘assurance maladie en ligne’, and is quite simply the initials for the French Social Security website.
DON’T WORRY, BE HAPPY
Beware! As in my case, not knowing that you have an espace does not stop them sending messages there.
You may well have been informed by snail-mail or e-mail but ignored it, dismissed it as spam as I did, or just forgotten about it.
Ne vous inquiètez pas! It’s never too late to set it up.