Women for Women France welcomes the apparent withdrawal of the decree seeking to “take into account the income of the insured spouse”, a measure based on a misinterpretation of French law which would have deprived 100,000 women in France of access to healthcare.
However, another measure retained by the new government raises serious concern: the requirement to present photo identification in order to access State Medical Aid (Aide Médicale d’État, AME). In practice, this would exclude many women who are victims of domestic abuse, trafficking, or sexual exploitation - women whose documents have been confiscated by their abusers - and would therefore deny them all access to healthcare in France.
A measure that ignores the reality of victims
Many migrant women are without identity papers not through negligence, but because of the violence they suffer. Their abusers (violent partners, traffickers, or exploitative employers) often confiscate, destroy, or withhold their identity documents as a means of control.
By requiring photo identification, the government would effectively deny these women healthcare precisely when they need it most: after sexual assault, when seeking an abortion, contraception, mental health care, or psychological and obstetric support.
“I do not believe the government is deliberately targeting women. However, I do believe it is rushing through a reform as part of political bargaining, without due diligence or assessment of its consequences. Presented as an administrative control measure, this reform will in reality lead to increased violence against women on French territory,” said Sarah McGrath, Chief Executive Officer at Women for Women France.
Women for Women France estimates that around 85,000 women are currently in an irregular situation due to administrative violence — a form of abuse not yet recognised in French law, but widespread in practice. Such violence can take many forms:
- withholding or destruction of identity documents,
- administrative sabotage (refusal to submit required documents),
- prohibition from learning French or pursuing training,
- blocking access to digital administrative platforms (ANEF, Ameli, CAF),
- threats of denunciation to the prefecture.
Making access to State Medical Aid conditional on documents often confiscated by abusers would perpetuate these forms of violence and punish victims for a legal vacuum that continues to go unacknowledged.
A vital right already strictly regulated
For these women, State Medical Aid is neither a social privilege nor a bureaucratic convenience, but a lifeline for autonomy and survival. Restricting access would force them to depend on their abusers to seek medical care, and sever their only link to professionals capable of detecting and reporting domestic violence.
State Medical Aid is already the most tightly controlled social system in France. According to the Evin-Stefanini report, fraud cases are marginal: 54 in 2014 and 38 in 2018. Further tightening access would attempt to solve a non-existent problem, at the expense of public health and fundamental rights.
Women for Women France calls on the government to:
- Reject any restriction on access to State Medical Aid based on identity documentation requirements.
- Improve the scheme in line with the constructive recommendations of the Evin-Stefanini report: longer coverage periods, simplified procedures, and a digital access card.
- Recognise administrative violence under the French Penal Code, to finally protect victims of this form of coercive control.
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About WFWF
Women for Women France (WFWF) is the creator and manager of the national Online Multilingual Online Resource Centre for all people confronted with domestic abuse and gender-based violence in France. Our expertise is in domestic abuse, coercive control, and migrants’ rights.