Hearing aid fraud: explosive rise in detected cases according to IGAS-IGF report
A report by IGAS and IGF signals a significant surge in fraud against the health insurance scheme in the hearing aid sector, facilitated by the 100% Health scheme.
Hearing aids: a sector targeted by health insurance fraud
Google News FR — Crime (fr) reports that hearing aids are the subject of an entire chapter in the report by IGAS and IGF published in late August 2026, dedicated to fraud in prescriptions and billing to the health insurance scheme. The authors note a marked increase in detected fraud in this sector, in the context of the rollout of the 100% Health scheme.
The document speaks of an "explosion" of hearing aid fraud in 2024, with equally significant amounts recorded in 2025. A pattern recurs repeatedly during inspections: the misappropriation of social security numbers, without the knowledge of the insured parties concerned, in order to bill for equipment that was never supplied. The reality of the equipment could be verified directly with the beneficiaries.
The report describes several observed practices, classified as fraud or abuse, "particularly in the hearing aid sector". In response to such behaviour, conventional rules have been strengthened. An amendment to the hearing aid professionals' convention, signed in October 2024 and applicable since January 2025, now requires the presentation of the Vitale card to benefit from third-party payment. This scheme is cited by the mission as a model that could be extended to other professions in order to limit fictitious billing.
The sector is also affected by the use of artificial intelligence in fraud detection. The Paris CPAM is conducting an experiment, at the initiative of CNAM and in partnership with a private operator, with a detection tool applied to reimbursements for optical supplies and hearing aids.
The rapporteurs establish a link between the development of the 100% Health scheme and reduced vigilance on the part of some insured parties, due to full third-party payment and the absence of out-of-pocket costs. They recommend strengthening checks upstream of reimbursements and making greater use of available data in order to identify fraudulent patterns more quickly.
In total, €723 million in health insurance fraud was detected and stopped in 2025, according to the figures cited in the report.
Source: Google News FR — Crime (fr)