France imposing a fine for no-shows at GP surgeries.

Well you could have one "free", so if you missed one - no penalty but a warning, but the next missed appointment you could get fined £25 and no more appointments will be made until you've paid the fine. It could, of course, result in even more pressure on A and E as serial defaulters could just go there instead of making an appointment, but perhaps fines could be imposed there for those who turn up with minor problems which should have been seen by a GP.

I think they would have to clean up their act in this country.

Last time I went for an appointment face to face, my gp phoned me as I was in the waiting room at the surgery.

I had been marked down as a phone consultation. Their mistake.

Under the plans, patients would have to provide debit or credit card details when arranging an appointment. If they fail to turn up without giving at least 24 hours’ notice, doctors would be allowed to fine them. However, the decision would be at their discretion and they could exempt patients with a valid reason for failing to show up.
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It is “a sum that may seem high to some, insufficient to others, but in any case, health is not free”, said Catherine Vautrin, the health minister, on RTL radio. The aim was, she said, to “make patients more responsible” at a time when “many French people are finding it difficult to access healthcare”.