The Orpea scandal shook the retirement home sector and damaged families' confidence. Three years later, and following a major audit program, the government believes that the vast majority of nursing homes do not pose any major problems.
Launched in 2022 after the revelation of cases of financial misconduct and abuse, the control plan has made it possible to inspect almost all (96%) of the 7,500 establishments accommodating elderly people in France, the Minister for Autonomy and Disability, Charlotte Parmentier-Lecocq, indicated on Thursday.
Nearly 90% of the inspections did not result in any "injunction," a corrective measure related to a serious risk, she said at a press conference in Paris. Conversely, approximately 11% of the establishments were considered to be in a degraded situation.
In total, 55 administrative sanctions were taken: 11 cases of permanent closure of total or partial activity for malfunctions endangering residents, nine cases of temporary suspension in particular for lack of qualified professionals and 35 cases of temporary administration.
Forty cases were reported to the public prosecutor. Of all the checks carried out, one-third were conducted on-site, and two-thirds were document-based.
"A follow-up has been carried out, and we are now remaining vigilant," the minister assured, specifying that an "information system would be available" in January 2026 to more seamlessly alert the authorities "in the event of risk or mistreatment."
"While there have been problems in some," the nursing homes "provide, for the most part, good support for our elderly," with "truly dedicated professionals," insisted Charlotte Parmentier-Lecocq.
"It's sometimes difficult for families to dare to ask questions, to challenge professionals or the nursing home management," she added. "Families really need to feel free to ask any questions they want, or to report any problems they perceive, and that needs to happen within the nursing home."
"This trust is important to restore because we need nursing homes and we need the professionals who work there," given the "exponential" needs of the coming decades linked to the aging of the population.
– Financing avenues –
To address this, the government has budgeted for the hiring of 6,500 full-time equivalents (FTEs) in 2025 and reaffirmed its objective of 50,000 additional FTEs in France by 2030.
To provide "financial relief" to nursing homes, the emergency fund dedicated to struggling establishments has been increased from 100 million to 300 million euros, Charlotte Parmentier-Lecocq recalled, specifying that the criteria for distributing this funding were currently being examined.
The government is also working to "identify new avenues" of financing for nursing homes, which house more than 600,000 residents and have emerged drained by Covid-19, the Orpea scandal, and inflation.
"We are not at this stage planning a new old age programming law," but "the budgetary commitment is definitely there," she assured.
After nursing homes, the government now intends to put disabled people's facilities under the grill.
"What we want is to target" the structures "where there may be more risks, so we will first target establishments that concern children and establishments with accommodation," she added, specifying that the objective was to inspect 500 establishments by the end of the year.
"It's the same logic as the control plan for nursing homes, including all structures, but with more on-site checks."
English 
French