Macron Calls for Review of Immigrant Health Care Program Amid Debate

It was in an interview with Europe 1 that the French President recently pleaded for an "extremely calm" debate on the issue of immigration, stating that France "cannot welcome everyone if it wants to welcome well".

A debate on the subject is to be held on September 30 in the National Assembly and on October 2 in the Senate. In mentioning the State Medical Assistance, Emmanuel Macron reacted to the affair of breast implants, which has caused a stir in recent days.

At the origin of the request for evaluation, a sentence from the General Delegate of La République en Marche (LREM), Stanislas Guerini, in an interview in which he declared "that undocumented immigrants would abuse the State Medical Assistance (AME) to have cosmetic surgery". A fraud of which the Minister of Health declares not to have knowledge.

Jordan Bardela, a Member of the European Parliament and a member of the National Rally, Marine Le Pen’s party, stated on a television set that it was a problem that people in an irregular situation could have access to the full range of free care like breast implants, estimating that the AME should be abolished.

Given the turn the affair has taken, Stanislas Guerini apologized on the microphone of Jean-Jacques Bourdin, saying that he had not cited the right example.

"It masked a situation of women who are in a situation of breast reconstruction after having had cancer. Of course, we must not touch them," he acknowledged.