The 116 117 is the national number for the Access to Care Service (SAS). It allows you to obtain medical advice or a referral to an available doctor when your regular doctor is absent or their office is closed. This number does not replace 15, which is reserved for life-threatening emergencies: it covers everyday medical situations that do not fall under hospital emergency services.
The 116 117 and the Framework of the Access to Care Service
The 116 117 does not operate like a traditional telephone switchboard. The call is handled by a medical regulation platform, where a liberal regulatory doctor assesses the situation. This practitioner, trained as a general practitioner, decides the next steps: a simple phone consultation, a referral for a quick consultation, or a transfer to 15 if the severity warrants it.
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This system is part of the SAS, a program aimed at better organizing access to unscheduled care in each area. The stated goal is to reduce avoidable visits to hospital emergency rooms by providing an appropriate medical response in advance. For everything you need to know about 116 117 with Medic Com, the principle remains the same throughout France: a single number, medical regulation, and then personalized guidance.
The difference with the previous organization of care continuity is structural. Previously, each department or community had its own on-call number. The 116 117 unifies this network under a single national entry point.
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Hours and Availability of 116 117 by Region
The operating hours of 116 117 vary by region, and this reality deserves explanation. Some areas offer broad coverage: evenings, nights, weekends, and holidays. Others limit the service to narrower time slots, for example, Monday to Friday from 8 AM to 8 PM.
This disparity is due to the local organization of medical regulation. The operation of 116 117 relies on the volunteerism of liberal general practitioners who agree to dedicate time to telephone support and unscheduled consultations. In areas where practitioners are few, the covered time slots may be more limited.
In practice, before calling 116 117 in the evening or on a holiday, it is important to know that the response depends on the active coverage in your department. Outside of the covered time slots, the call is generally redirected to 15 (SAMU), which provides continuous medical regulation.
Medical Situations Suitable for 116 117
The 116 117 covers what regulation refers to as unscheduled care: health issues that require prompt attention without being life-threatening emergencies. The line between the two is not always clear for the patient, and it is precisely the role of the regulatory doctor to draw it.
- Persistent fever, unusual abdominal or joint pain, prolonged vomiting or diarrhea in an adult or child.
- Moderate allergic reaction (skin rash, localized swelling) without signs of respiratory distress.
- Need for a treatment renewal in the absence of the regular doctor, or uncertainty about how to proceed with new symptoms.
- Consultation for an infant or elderly person whose condition is concerning without showing immediate signs of severity.
On the other hand, a fainting spell with loss of consciousness, sudden chest pain, severe breathing difficulty, or an accident with trauma fall under 15 or 112. 116 117 does not handle life-threatening emergencies.
What Distinguishes 116 117 from 15 and 112
Confusion between these numbers is common, and it has direct consequences on the congestion of emergency services. Here is the distribution logic:
- The 15 (SAMU) is the emergency medical regulation number. It mobilizes a SMUR team if necessary, an ambulance transport, or directs to hospital emergency services.
- 18 (firefighters) intervenes for accidents, fires, and rescue operations when the situation involves an immediate physical risk.
- 112 is the European emergency number, accessible from any country in the Union. It redirects to the appropriate service based on the nature of the call.
- 116 117 positions itself upstream of these systems: it filters requests for non-urgent care to prevent them from saturating the lines of 15 or hospital services.
This distribution is based on a simple principle: each call must reach the right contact from the first point of contact. Calling 15 for a sore throat on a Saturday morning mobilizes an emergency doctor whose time would be better spent on a cardiac emergency. The 116 117 absorbs this request and responds appropriately.
Free of Charge and Financial Coverage After the Call
Calling 116 117 is free, regardless of the telephone operator. If the regulatory doctor refers you to a consultation with a liberal practitioner, it is billed at the usual rate of the doctor. The consultation remains reimbursable by health insurance and supplemental health coverage under standard conditions.
The cost for the patient does not change compared to a scheduled consultation with their regular doctor. The difference lies in the access pathway: instead of searching for an open office yourself or going to the emergency room by default, the regulation of 116 117 identifies the most suitable available practitioner for the situation and geographical area.
116 117 functions more as a medical routing service than as a care service in itself. Its value lies in the sorting it performs: directing each patient to the appropriate level of response, without overloading hospital structures or leaving those who need quick medical advice without a solution.