Payment and travel insurance
The price
All medical emergency services are available both during the week and weekend, day and night. The price of a consultation is higher during the weekend (from Friday evening until Monday morning) and on public holidays. The GPs consultation varies between 20 and 30 euros, a specialist will charge between 25 and 50 (it could be more).
If you go to the hospital's emergency service, you will be asked to pay a supplement if your GP hasn't sent you or if you didn't need an ambulance to take you.
Methods of payment
If you are an EU national (+ Island, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland), you should have received, before leaving your country, the E111 (valid 1 year), E106 (over 1 year stay in a family) or E109 (stay over a year) forms or you should have the European Health Insurance card (valid 1 year) that exists since June 1, 2004. If you have one of these documents, give it to the doctor or hospital and you will not have to pay the bill or you will be (partially) reimbursed in your country.
If the doctor or hospital does not respect the official fees (he is then called non-conventionnée), or if you don't have a document mentioned above, you will have to pay the bill immediately and be reimbursed in your country when you present the bill and proof of payment.
Doctors are paid in cash but most hospitals accept bank cards.
Insurances/Repatriation on medical grounds
Before leaving your country, check what your complementary insurance will cover. If you believe your insurance isn't enough then you can contract a supplementary insurance that will cover hospitalisation and repatriation.
In case of an accident with a third party, make sure you have his name and address and fill an accident report as soon as possible (straight away, if possible). Car insurance is obligatory and for all other types of accidents most inhabitants have a civil liability insurance (Responsabilité civile) and a family insurance (for damages caused by their kids, for example).