The telemedicine market in France

Telemedicine is a sub-area of e-health, which encompasses innovations in the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) for healthcare activities.

In France, since 2009, telemedicine has been regulated, and the Public Health Code defines 5 types of medical acts covered by telemedicine [Article L6316-1 Legifrance]:

Teleconsultation: enabling a medical professional to consult a patient remotely;

tele-expertise: which enables a medical professional to seek the opinion of other medical experts on the basis of elements in a patient's medical file;

remote medical monitoring: enabling a healthcare professional to make decisions about patient care;

medical remote assistance: enabling a medical professional to provide remote assistance to another professional during the performance of a procedure,

telemedicine also includes medical response to calls made to the SAMU (emergency medical service) or the Centres 15 (emergency call centers).

This study covers all these medical acts, and shows how telemedicine can be a solution to medical deserts and the current situation where healthcare expenditure is growing faster than GDP.

E-health encompasses innovations in the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) for health-related activities. Sales in France were estimated at 3 billion euros in 2016 . At the time, telemedicine sales accounted for 5.2% of the e-health market, or 156 million euros. [BPI]

It has not been updated to 2022, but has undoubtedly evolved since 2016. Indeed, between 2016 and 2022, 250 fundraisings took place in the e-health sector, with a total value over this period of 3 billion euros. The year 2022 also saw significant fundraising, with a total value of over 1 billion euros. In 2025, they are expected to raise over 1.2 billion euros, an increase of 14% on 2022. [Mind Health]

The global telemedicine market is also growing rapidly. It is valued at $72 billion in2022and isexpected to grow at a CAGR of 12.9%over theperiod 2023-2032, reaching$242.2 billion.it is dominated by North America, which holds more than half of the market share. [Global Market Insights]

Market growth is being driven by both the prevalence of chronic diseases and an ageing population. In addition, the Covid-19 pandemic has had a strong and positive impact on the development of telemedicine. In France, between January and October 2020, the number of teleconsultations increased by a factor of 3 for patients and by a factor of 5 for healthcare professionals. [Agence du numérique en santé]. Among the 31 OECD members who took part in a telemedicine survey in 2021, 23 countries out of 31 authorize the use of telemedicine services.telemedicine services, 6 more than before the pandemic (Estonia, Germany, Iceland, Luxembourg, Portugal and the United States). [OECD]

Finally, the French government is increasingly mobilizing to digitize the healthcare system and meet current challenges, notably through : the multiplication of ARS (Agences Régionales de Santé) actions, the "Ma santé 2022" plan which aims to accelerate the digital shift, or the reimbursement set up by the Assurance Maladie.