Medical Desertification

France is suffering from a shortage of general practitioners. One of the symptoms of this sickness has been termed 'medical desertification'. But what lies behind this expression? The economists Julien Silhol, Bruno Ventelou and Anna Zaytseva overthrow the assumptions in their latest publication. They reveal a little-known truth: inequalities exist in access to care from one end of France to the other, and not only in rural areas. An in-depth study is conducted into the practices of general practitioners in these areas defined by the ARS as 'under-provisioned': do these medical practices differ according to location?