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I am currently in the US and I'll be in France for the summer. Can a physician in the US make a referral that I can use in France? If that matters, I have a French Social Security and the referral would be for a MRI.

I wonder whether the French Social Security will reimburse me with this prescription, just as if I had a prescription from a physician located in France.

To remove the myth around the French healthcare system, in case anyone suspect I am trying to take advantage of the French Social Security, here are the prices I would pay given my health insurances:

  • Cost of an MRI in France: 450 EUR without insurance, 300 EUR with my insurance (the cost varies depend on the lab so there might be cheaper, but often cheaper means longer waiting time, up to several months)
  • Cost of an MRI in the US: 1800 USD without insurance, 50 USD with my insurance (appointment within the week). The appointment with the medical specialist is free (unlike most specialists in France).
  • Cost of an MRI in South Korea: 500 USD (appointment within the week).

I am insured in both France and the US, not in South Korea.

Franck Dernoncourt
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1 Answers1

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AFAIK, an MRI does not necessarily needs to be prescribed, you could in principle simply make an appointment with an imagery lab. Usually, patients would have a referral letter by their general practitioner or another physician, which would indicate what needs to be done and why but that's not really a “prescription” like the ones you need to get restricted medicines. Having a letter from your physician in the US could still be helpful but since it's not formally a prescription, recognition should not be an issue (but you would obviously need to find a radiology specialist who is able to read English).

The lab will probably ask for this letter (along with a number of other things) and it might be difficult to get an appointment without it but it is by no means mandatory. Because of this, you could probably even get money back from the French state insurance system if you are covered (unlike medicines prescribed from non-EU physicians, which are not covered). As user13619 commented below, you might however get a 10% penalty since you would be outside the parcours de soin.

Anecdotally, I heard there is some waiting time for MRI so it might be difficult to fit it in your holiday if you haven't made an appointment beforehand but it's certainly worth a try.

Relaxed
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