France to make condoms free for young adults aged 18-25

French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday that condoms would be made available for free in pharmacies for 18- to 25-year-olds in a bid to reduce unwanted pregnancies among young people. 

French President Emmanuel Macron said that condoms would be made available for free in pharmacies for 18- to 25-year-olds in a bid to reduce unwanted pregnancies among young people, 8 December, 2022. AFP - STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN

"It's a small revolution for contraception," Macron said during a health debate with young people in Fontaine-le-Comte, a suburb of Poitiers in western France.

The move comes after the government began offering this year free birth control for all women under 25, expanding a scheme targeting under-18s to ensure young women do not stop taking contraception because they cannot afford it.

Condoms are already reimbursed by the national healthcare system if prescribed by a doctor or midwife, a measure intended to fight the spread of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.

But this measure is not well known by young people: only 21 percent of minors and 29 percent of 18-24 year olds are aware of it, according to the Elysée.

Government figures show the number of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), in particular Chlamydia and gonococcus, is on the rise among young people, especially among men aged 15 to 29 (+ 45 percent between 2017 and 2019), according to the data of the presidency.

In 2021, the number of new diagnoses of HIV infection has also stagnated around 5,000.

Improve sexual education

By 2030, the objective is: "zero new infections" by HIV and the elimination of STIs "as major public health problems", according to the objectives set during Macron's previous five-year term.

On the topic of sexual education overall, "we are not very good on this subject," the president said.

"The reality is very, very different from the theory. It's an area where we need to much better educate our teachers," Macron said.

Macron wore a face mask at the conference, saying he was following "health ministry guidelines", as the government weighs its response to a rise in Covid cases ahead of the holidays, though so far no mask mandates have been reintroduced.

"Faced with the new spread of the epidemic... I think it's good to set an example because we don't necessarily want to return to overall mandates," he said.

Officials are urging people to wear masks in crowded venues and to get Covid vaccine booster shots as winter approaches.

(with wires)