Disability in France

According to the Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques (National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies), in 2007 there were 9.6 million disabled people living in France.{{cite web |title=Population handicapée − Tableaux de l'Économie Française {{!}} Insee |url=https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/1373648?sommaire=1373710&q=Population+handicap%C3%A9e |website=www.insee.fr |publisher=Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques |access-date=8 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190128160618/https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/1373648?sommaire=1373710&q=Population+handicap%C3%A9e |archive-date=28 January 2019 |url-status=live }} In 2023, 140,000 people with disabilities aged 16 and older are living in specialized institutions.{{Cite web |last=TOSI |first=Gwendoline |date=2023-04-24 |title=Le handicap en France : chiffres et statistiques révélés par la DREES |url=https://www.mydl.fr/le-handicap-en-france-chiffres-et-statistiques-reveles-par-la-drees/ |access-date=2023-06-09 |website=MYD'L |language=fr-FR}}

File:Mme Gardriol en chaise, Luchon, 9 juillet 1899 (2553851366).jpg; French spa towns like Bagnères-de-Luchon have a long history of accommodating people with some disabilities.]]Disability is defined in article 114 of the Disability Law 2005 as "any limitations in participating in society because of a substantial, permanent condition affecting a person's physical, sensory or mental functioning, which includes cognitive and psychiatric disorders and disabling chronic illnesses".{{cite web|url=https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000809647&dateTexte=&categorieLien=id|title=LOI n° 2005-102 du 11 février 2005 pour l'égalité des droits et des chances, la participation et la citoyenneté des personnes handicapées|date=2005|website=LegiFrance|publisher=General Secretariat of the government|access-date=8 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181226031947/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000809647&dateTexte=&categorieLien=id|archive-date=26 December 2018|url-status=live}} The United Nations (UN) has requested that France updates its legal definition of disability as it does not take into account society's limitations through the human rights-based approach to disability.

France ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2010.{{cite web |title=OHCHR {{!}} End of Mission Statement by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities, Ms. Catalina Devandas-Aguilar, on her visit to France |url=https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=22245&LangID=E |website=www.ohchr.org |publisher=OHCHR |access-date=8 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180209163845/http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=22245&LangID=E |archive-date=9 February 2018 |url-status=live }}

When he was elected in May 2017, the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, declared that disability would be a priority of his five-year term of office.{{Cite web |title=Le programme d'Emmanuel Macron pour le handicap |url=https://en-marche.fr/emmanuel-macron/le-programme/handicap |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=La République En Marche ! |language=fr}}

France has been the subject of much criticism for its use of the medical approach to disability rather than the human rights-based approach as set out in the CRPD., and the persistent use of psychoanalysis in the treatment of autism.{{Cite journal |last1=Bishop |first1=D. V. M. |last2=Swendsen |first2=Joel |date=April 2021 |title=Psychoanalysis in the treatment of autism: why is France a cultural outlier? |journal=BJPsych Bulletin |language=en |volume=45 |issue=2 |pages=89–93 |doi=10.1192/bjb.2020.138 |pmid=33327979 |issn=2056-4694|doi-access=free |pmc=8111966 }}

The United Nations (UN) condemned France in 2015 for placing a 16-year-old autistic boy in a psychiatric hospital without his or his mother's consent. This type of institutionalization, which took place a few days after the teenager was sent to an institut médicoéducatif (IME), is considered a deprivation of freedom and a violation of his security under international law.{{Cite web |date=2015-09-17 |title=France : des experts de l'ONU demandent de cesser l'hospitalisation psychiatrique d'un autiste {{!}} ONU Info |url=https://news.un.org/fr/story/2015/09/318792 |access-date=2023-06-09 |website=news.un.org |language=fr}} On 4 February 2016, the UN further expressed its concern regarding cases of ill-treatment of children with disabilities in institutions and the lack of independent monitoring of such institutions. It was also concerned that the "packing" technique (wrapping a child in cold, wet sheets), which amounts to ill‑treatment, has not been legally prohibited in France, even though it was banned by the health authorities, and was reportedly still being practiced on some children with autistic spectrum disorders.{{Cite web |url=https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/TreatyBodyExternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CRC/C/FRA/CO/5&Lang=en |access-date=2023-06-09 |website=tbinternet.ohchr.org}}

In 2017, the UN special rapporteur, Catalina Devandas Aguilar, visited France from 3 to 17 October.{{Cite journal |last1=Devandas-Aguilar |first1=Catalina |last2=Disabilities |first2=UN Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with |date=2019-01-08 |title=Visit to France :: report of the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities |url=https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/1663797 |language=fr}} She observed that France's legislation, particularly the 2005 disability law as well as the law on mental health, were not in alignment with the CRPD, notably Article 12 (legal capacity). She called for legislative authorities to undertake a comprehensive review of the entire legal framework in order to complete the process of legal harmonization, in accordance with Article 4 (general obligations) of the convention. Ms. Devandas noted{{Cite web |title=Observations préliminaires de la Rapporteuse spéciale sur les droits des personnes handicapées, Mme Catalina Devandas-Aguilar au cours de sa visite en France, du 3 au 13 octobre 2017 |url=https://www.ohchr.org/fr/statements/2017/10/end-mission-statement-united-nations-special-rapporteur-rights-persons |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=OHCHR |language=fr}} that France had failed to implement and take into account the change of paradigm required by the convention, and the majority of officials she had met with during her trip to France had not been aware of the changes brought about by the CRPD, solely referring to the local 2005 law. She was also concerned with France's approach to institutionalization which runs contrary to the CRPD and the goal of social inclusion. The Committee noted in their report that children with disabilities enrolled in mainstream schools "face multiple barriers to access education on an equal basis with others. This is not only due to the lack of accessible infrastructure, but also because there is no specialized training for regular teachers and school assistants, and no curricular adaptations and accommodation in the classrooms, which affects the quality of education." She expressed "grave concern" about the situation of around 81,000 children placed in segregated medico-educative institutions, recommending that France shut them down and transform them into non-residential resource centers.{{Cite web |last=Sevestre |first=Aurélia |date=2017-10-16 |title=Selon la rapporteuse de l'Onu, l'État français doit fermer progressivement tous les établissements |url=https://www.faire-face.fr/2017/10/16/etat-francais-fermer-etablissements-onu/ |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=Faire Face - Toute l'actualité du handicap |language=fr-FR}} "Even more worrisome, according to unofficial estimates, there are reportedly some 12,000 so-called 'children without a solution' in France, and up to 40,000 autistic students, who receive no education at all."

In 2021, the UN visited France again, and Jonas Ruskus, UN special rapporteur for disability rights, raised the same concerns about France's medical approach to disability, issues related to consent, and the education of children with disabilities.{{Cite web |date=2021-08-23 |title=Experts of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Raise Questions about the Medical Approach to Disability Used in France |url=https://www.ungeneva.org/en/news-media/meeting-summary/2021/08/la-france-na-pas-encore-integre-lapproche-du-handicap-fondee-sur |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=UN GENEVA |language=en}} The crux of the problem remained the 2005 law on disability which was still not harmonized with the CRPD and which sets out the medical model, particularly Article 1 of the 2005 law, which creates confusion between medical associations and organizations of persons with disabilities. This leads to systemic discrimination against persons with disabilities and to a conflict of interest since these medical associations also run and manage institutions. Mr Ruskus stated that he was disappointed to see such high levels of structural discrimination in France{{Cite web |title=La France n'a pas encore intégré l'approche du handicap fondée sur les droits de l'homme, regrette le Comité des droits des personnes handicapées |url=https://www.ohchr.org/fr/press-releases/2021/08/experts-committee-rights-persons-disabilities-raise-questions-about-medical |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=OHCHR |language=fr}} regarding people with disabilities "expressing doubt that the French motto of Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité was really applied to people with disabilities."

In 2022, the UN wrote a letter to France expressing its concern of threats of intimidation towards a special educator in an institut médicoéducatif (institution for children with intellectual disabilities), Olivier Paolini.{{Cite web |date=2022-09-22 |title=Comment cet enseignant est devenu lanceur d'alerte pour les droits des enfants handicapés |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.fr/life/article/droits-des-enfants-handicapes-comment-cet-enseignant-est-devenu-lanceur-d-alerte_207486.html |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=Le HuffPost |language=fr}} He stated that the institution did not adhere to the minimum requirements of schooling as it did not deem it important. As no official reply was provided by the French government, the UN made the letter public.{{Cite web |last=Bourke |first=Fiachra |date=2022-08-31 |title=France: actes d'intimidation présumés contre M. Olivier Paolini, enseignant et défenseur des droits d'enfants handicapés (communication conjointe) |url=https://srdefenders.org/france-actes-dintimidation-presumes-contre-m-olivier-paolini-enseignant-et-defenseur-des-droits-denfants-handicapes-communication-conjointe/ |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=UN SR Human Rights Defenders |language=en-GB}}

During its examination of the rights of children in France, in April 2023, the UN reminded France of the "very large" work it needed to do to ensure the rights of disabled children.{{Cite web |date=2023-05-10 |title=Examen de la France devant le Comité des droits de l'enfant : la situation dans l'outre-mer, les violences à l'égard des enfants, y compris en ligne, ainsi que la situation des enfants handicapés et des mineurs non accompagnés sont au cœur du dialogue |url=https://www.ungeneva.org/fr/news-media/meeting-summary/2023/05/experts-committee-rights-child-praise-france-outreach-patrols |access-date=2023-06-08 |website=ONU GENEVE |language=fr}} Those children "without a solution" were of particular concern as well as those living in Belgium, many kilometers away from their families. It remains concerned at the high levels of children institutionalized and the discrimination children with disabilities face in mainstream schools. The committee also deplored the fact that the average autism diagnosis in the country is too late, on average at 7 years old.

On 17 April 2023, the Council of Europe unanimously ruled that France had violated four articles (11.1, 15.1, 15.3, and 16) of the European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) charter on disabled people. Inaccessibility, lack of education opportunities and lack of access to healthcare were the main areas of concern.{{Cite web |title=France has violated the rights of people with disabilities, rules Council of Europe |url=https://www.thelocal.fr/20230417/france-has-violated-the-rights-of-people-with-disabilities-rules-council-of-europe |website=Le Local}} The Council noted that many people with disabilities and their families live in precarious financial situations due to the barriers they face.

Allocation d'éducation de l'enfant handicapé (disabled children's education allowance) is paid to the parents or guardians of some children with disabilities. To be eligible, the child must be under the age of 20 and:{{cite web |title=AEEH - Allocation d'Éducation de l'Enfant Handicapé |url=http://aidefamille.fr/info/allocation-education-de-enfant-handicape-aeeh.html |website=AideFamille |access-date=8 January 2019 |language=fr |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225051624/http://aidefamille.fr/info/allocation-education-de-enfant-handicape-aeeh.html |archive-date=25 December 2018 |url-status=live }}

• Assessed as being as at least 80% disabled or
• Assessed as being between 50 and 79% disabled and require specialist equipment or support at school
• Not resides at a medico-social institution where the cost is covered by the state or health insurance

In 2022, over 430,000 children with disabilities attended mainstream schools, with or without one-on-one or mutualized aid, and/or with technical or other adaptations.{{Cite web |title=La scolarisation des élèves en situation de handicap |url=https://www.education.gouv.fr/la-scolarisation-des-eleves-en-situation-de-handicap-1022 |access-date=2023-06-09 |website=Ministère de l'Education Nationale et de la Jeunesse |language=fr}} Some of these students may be a part of Unités localisées pour l'inclusion scolaire (ULIS) of which there were 10,272 in 2022. Both mainstream classes and ULIS are run by the Education Ministry.

The conditions to attend a mainstream class, in both primary and secondary education, depend on the seriousness of the disability.

The ULIS program allows children with disabilities to learn at their own pace and with an adapted curriculum in a group of around 12 students. The amount of classes or activities that are to be attended in the mainstream classroom depends on the student's personalized plan.

{{cite journal | url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epub/10.1080/09687599.2021.1907547?needAccess=true | doi=10.1080/09687599.2021.1907547 | title=Being different or similar? An exploration of inclusive education from the point of view of French adolescents | date=2022 | last1=Chevallier-Rodrigues | first1=Emilie | last2=Savournin | first2=Florence | last3=Courtinat-Camps | first3=Amélie | last4=Brossais | first4=Emmanuelle | last5=De Léonardis | first5=Myriam | journal=Disability & Society | volume=37 | issue=10 | pages=1568–1590 | s2cid=234827857 | url-access=subscription }}

If a child or young adult cannot attend a mainstream school, they will be redirected toward a medical-social institution, such as an institut médicoéducatif for children with intellectual disabilities aged 3 to 20 years old, where they can also get different types of therapy based on their disability.{{Cite web |title=Institut médico-éducatif (IME) : Tous les établissements de type Institut médico-éducatif (IME) |url=https://annuaire.action-sociale.org/etablissements/jeunes-handicapes/institut-medico-educatif--i-m-e---183.html |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=annuaire.action-sociale.org}} Medical-social institutions are run by the Health Ministry, financed by French Social Security and managed by private parent associations or charities, such as the French Red Cross.

During the 2022–2023 school year, there were around 203 teams from the medical-social sector that can be mobilized to support children with disabilities in mainstream schools.

Since 2018, the national strategy for autism{{Cite web |title=Stratégie nationale 2018-2022 pour l'autisme : garantir la scolarisation effective des enfants et des jeunes |url=https://www.education.gouv.fr/strategie-nationale-2018-2022-pour-l-autisme-garantir-la-scolarisation-effective-des-enfants-et-des-11585 |access-date=2023-06-09 |website=Ministère de l'Education Nationale et de la Jeunesse |language=fr}} has created 180 nursery school autism classes and 90 primary school autism classes within mainstream schools. These classes are contained and are part of the medical-social sector.{{Cite web |title=Autisme et TND : tout savoir sur la rentrée ! {{!}} handicap.gouv.fr |url=http://handicap.gouv.fr/autisme-et-tnd-tout-savoir-sur-la-rentree |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=handicap.gouv.fr |language=fr}}

The three leading pieces of legislation for disabled workers in France are; The French Labour Law ("Code du Travail"),{{cite web |url=http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichCode.do?cidTexte=LEGITEXT000006072050&dateTexte=20090311 |title=Code du travail |publisher=Legifrance |date= |access-date=2018-03-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310135848/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichCode.do?cidTexte=LEGITEXT000006072050&dateTexte=20090311 |archive-date=2018-03-10 |url-status=live }} the 1987 Disability Employment Act ("Loi n° 87-517 du 10 juillet 1987 en faveur de l'emploi des travailleurs handicapés") {{cite web |url=http://legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000512481 |title=Loi n° 87-517 du 10 juillet 1987 en faveur de l'emploi des travailleurs handicapés |publisher=Legifrance |date= |access-date=2018-03-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310135914/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000512481 |archive-date=2018-03-10 |url-status=live }} and The 2005 Disability Act ("Loi numero 2005-102 du 11 février 2005 pour l'égalité des droits et des chances, la participation et la citoyenneté des personnes handicapées").{{cite web |url=http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000809647 |title=Loi n° 2005-102 du 11 février 2005 pour l'égalité des droits et des chances, la participation et la citoyenneté des personnes handicapées |publisher=Legifrance |date= |access-date=2018-03-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180315181852/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000809647 |archive-date=2018-03-15 |url-status=live }}

The Employment of Disabled Workers Act 1987 outlined a quota system for the employment of disabled persons. It stipulated that any company with a workforce of more than 20 employees must ensure that at least 6% of their personnel are disabled workers.{{cite web |url=http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/soc-prot/disable/socpart/comp05_en.pdf |title=Compendium - Good practice in employment of people with disabilities |date= |access-date=2018-03-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310010319/http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/soc-prot/disable/socpart/comp05_en.pdf |archive-date=2018-03-10 |url-status=live }}

Quota objectives are achieved by a combination of sanction and incentive: employers evade paying the penalty as far as possible and are encouraged to recruit and retain people with disabilities through the prospect of financial support. Evidence suggests that many employers prefer to pay the contribution rather than consider employing a person with a disability.http://www.nda.ie/Publications/Employment/Employment-Training/Employment-Publications/Statutory-targets-on-employment-of-people-with-disabilities-in-the-public-sector/2-International-practice-in-quota-monitoring/{{dead link|date=December 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

EU SILC data for 2009, compiled by ANED, illustrated that the employment rate for disabled people (aged 20–64) in France was 49.8%, in comparison to 72.1% for non-disabled people (51.5% for disabled men and 48.4% for disabled women){{cite web |url=http://www.disability-europe.net/content/facts-and-figures-18 |title=Facts and figures | ANED |access-date=2014-11-03 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141230223018/http://www.disability-europe.net/content/facts-and-figures-18 |archive-date=2014-12-30 |url-status=dead }}

Sheltered workshops (Établissement(s) et service(s) d'accompagnement par le travail - ESAT) are run by the Health Ministry. According to a report by the French Senate in 2023, sheltered workshops act as a safety net allowing people with disabilities to "have both a professional and social life". Only 3,1% of the private sector in France hires people with disabilities. Public policy for disability was late to arrive in France which meant that before the 1970s, it was up to private individuals in the form of associations and charities to organize themselves.{{Cite web |date=2023-04-03 |title=Les établissements et services d'aide par le travail face à la contrainte budgétaire |url=https://www.senat.fr/rap/r14-409/r14-409.html |access-date=2023-06-09 |website=Sénat |language=fr-FR}} The current structure of sheltered workshops falls under the Disability Law of 2005. Sheltered workshops in France fall under the medical-social sector and employment law does not apply (as of 2023).

Adapted enterprises (entreprises adaptées) are companies in the private sector which hire up to 55% of disabled people to help with their production. In order to become an adapted enterprise, an agreement must be made with local authorities. These companies can receive several types of financial aids per disabled person employed. Employees of adapted enterprises fall under employment law and have temporary contracts.{{Cite web |date=2023-06-10 |title=Emploi et handicap : les entreprises adaptées (EA) |url=https://travail-emploi.gouv.fr/emploi-et-insertion/emploi-et-handicap/article/emploi-et-handicap-les-entreprises-adaptees-ea |access-date=2023-06-10 |website=Ministère du Travail, du Plein emploi et de l'Insertion |language=fr}}

There are a few regular disability arts events in France.

• Art et Décirure ({{langx|fr|links=no|Art et Déchirure}}) is a multi-arts festival featuring artists and performers with mental illness. It is held annually since 1988 in Rouen, Normandy.
• Clin d'Oliel ({{langx|fr|Clin d'Œil|links=no}} is a biannual, since 2003, performing arts festival featuring French sign language hosted in Reims.{{cite web |title=European Disability Arts Festivals |url=https://www.disabilityartsinternational.org/resources/european-disability-arts-festivals/ |website=Disability Arts International |access-date=23 September 2020 |language=en}}

France participated in the inaugural Paralympic Games in 1960 in Rome, and has taken part in every edition of the Summer and Winter Paralympics since then. France was the host country of the 1992 Winter Paralympics.

Eugène Rubens-Alcais introduced the Deaflympics in 1924 in Paris.{{cite web |title=History |url=https://www.deaflympics.com/icsd/history |website=deaflympics.com |publisher=International Committee of Sports for the Deaf |access-date=8 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190105164657/http://www.deaflympics.com/icsd/history |archive-date=5 January 2019 |url-status=live }} France has competed in every Deaflympics.{{cite web |title=deaflympics.com |url=https://www.deaflympics.com/countries/FRA |website=deaflympics.com |publisher=International Committee of Sports for the Deaf |access-date=8 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190103135609/http://deaflympics.com/countries/FRA |archive-date=3 January 2019 |url-status=live }}

According to French parent groups and associations, France is "50 years behind" when it comes to the treatment of autism.{{Cite news |last=Chrisafis |first=Angelique |date=2018-02-08 |title='France is 50 years behind': the 'state scandal' of French autism treatment |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/feb/08/france-is-50-years-behind-the-state-scandal-of-french-autism-treatment |access-date=2023-06-11 |issn=0261-3077}} A long-held belief in autism being a psychosis and the reliance on Freudian psychoanalysis as an adequate form of treatment has meant that many autistic children go undiagnosed or are placed in psychiatric hospitals; some are even taken away from their parents.

In 2011, Le Mur (in English, The Wall), a documentary film by Sophie Robert about the use of psychoanalysis to treat autism in France, was the subject of a court case.{{Cite web |date=2011-12-05 |title=French Psychoanalysts Take Legal Action to Ban Film 'The Wall' About Autism |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-wall-film-autism_b_1127680 |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=HuffPost |language=en}} The film argues that while the rest of the world considered autism as a neuro-developmental disorder, in France the sector remained dominated by psychoanalysis, which sees autism as a psychosis caused by difficulties in relationships and ultimately caused by the actions of the mother (see: Refrigerator Mother Theory). Therapy often consists of mother-child psychotherapy sessions with the goal of fixing said relationship. Three of the psychoanalysts featured in the film sued Ms Robert and won their case; the film was banned. The following year, in 2012, the court of appeal overturned the ruling.{{Cite web |date=2014-01-19 |title=Autisme : la cour d'appel annule la censure du documentaire Le Mur (dénonçant la psychanalyse) |url=http://www.psychomedia.qc.ca/autisme/2014-01-19/annulation-censure-documentaire-le-mur-denoncant-la-psychanalyse |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=Psychomédia |language=fr}}

In 2012, the French High Health Authority (Haute autorité de santé) publicly stated that psychoanalysis and the use of institutional psychotherapy are not consensual forms of treatment of autism.{{Cite web |last=Docteurs |first=La rédaction d'Allo |date=2012-02-13 |title=Autisme : la psychanalyse remise en cause par la Haute Autorité de santé ? |url=https://www.allodocteurs.fr/maladies-cerveau-et-neurologie-autisme-autisme-la-psychanalyse-remise-en-cause-par-la-haute-autorite-de-sante-6112.html |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=AlloDocteurs |language=fr}} The same year, an article was published by Le Monde newspaper by Yehezkel Ben-Ari, a neurobiologist, Nouchine Hadjikhani, a neuroscientist and Eric Lemonnier, a child psychiatrist, denouncing the use of psychoanalysis in the treatment of autism due to the lack of scientific evidence of its efficacy.{{Cite news |date=2012-02-22 |title=Ni rituel psychanalytique ni réductionnisme génétique ! |language=fr |work=Le Monde.fr |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/idees/article/2012/02/22/ni-rituel-psychanalytique-ni-reductionnisme-genetique_1646803_3232.html |access-date=2023-06-11}}

The United Nations got involved in the case of a 16-year-old boy, Timothée D., who has autism.{{Cite web |title=Des experts de l'ONU demandent à la France la cessation de l'institutionnalisation d'un enfant autiste dans un hôpital psychiatrique |url=https://www.ohchr.org/fr/press-releases/2015/09/des-experts-de-lonu-demandent-la-france-la-cessation-de |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=OHCHR |language=fr}} In 2016, they condemned his placement in a psychiatric hospital where his mother was prohibited from seeing him (after a few days spent in an institut médicoéducatif where he was redirected after having spent his entire schooling in mainstream school, and after a European arrest warrant was filed after the family had fled to Ireland).{{Cite web |date=2018-09-29 |title=Lettre ouverte du beau-père de Timothée (autiste), au Président de la République - "Au bonheur d'Elise" |url=http://dupuiselise.canalblog.com/archives/2018/09/29/36744995.html |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=dupuiselise.canalblog.com |language=fr}} The special rapporteur for the rights of people with disabilities, Catalina Devandas-Alguilar, stated: "The institutionalization of Timothée D. in a psychiatric unit is a serious violation of the right of freedom and security, and with respect to his physical and mental health."{{Cite web |date=2015-09-17 |title=France : des experts de l'ONU demandent de cesser l'hospitalisation psychiatrique d'un autiste {{!}} ONU Info |url=https://news.un.org/fr/story/2015/09/318792 |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=news.un.org |language=fr}} The rapporteur on the right to health, Dainius Pûras, reiterated the statement.

The same year, the UN stated in its report of France that autistic children "continue to be subjected to widespread violations of their rights".{{Cite web |url=http://docstore.ohchr.org/SelfServices/FilesHandler.ashx?enc=6QkG1d/PPRiCAqhKb7yhsunLt/WNn9IUMCa5I2sTMky9H0t6Apsnxbu5hzZI1wZHQ27v2tg7RHSMFiRR1IfnF2Zv3VP/zy6dXsmqAWdy5aN1NNe2Yi+I8zMJaQXD6Bm2 |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=docstore.ohchr.org}} They condemned the use of "packing" (wrapping cold, wet sheets around an individual during a psychotic episode) which is considered as ill-treatment. Although packing has been banned since 2012 in France, it is still used to treat psychosis, with some studies on packing continuing.{{cn|date=June 2023}}

In 2017, the 'Rachel Case' was a high-profile court battle of an autistic mother whose children who also have autism were removed from her{{Cite web |date=2017-07-13 |title="Justice pour Rachel" : pétition pour qu'une mère retrouve ses enfants autistes, placés |url=https://www.europe1.fr/societe/justice-pour-rachel-petition-pour-quune-mere-retrouve-ses-enfants-autistes-places-3388664 |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=Europe 1 |language=fr}} and placed in foster homes. Several associations launched petitions who claim the lack of understanding of autism by authorities is to blame.

The University of Cambridge argued in an article entitled "Psychoanalysis in the treatment of autism: Why is France a cultural outlier?" from December 2020, that French supporters of psychoanalysis say it is a matter of cultural preference. However, the authors of the article state that psychoanalysis in France is protected from criticism by powerful educational and political networks.{{Cite journal |last1=Bishop |first1=D. V. M. |last2=Swendsen |first2=Joel |date=2020-12-17 |title=Psychoanalysis in the treatment of autism: why is France a cultural outlier? |journal=BJPsych Bulletin |volume=45 |issue=2 |pages=89–93 |doi=10.1192/bjb.2020.138 |issn=2056-4694|doi-access=free |pmid=33327979 |pmc=8111966 }}

If autism is suspected, it is recommended to get a diagnosis from a regional Autism Resource Centre (Centre ressource autisme) which were created in 2005.{{Cite web |date=2023-06-12 |title=Accueil {{!}} Craif - Centre de Ressources Autisme Ile-de-France |url=https://www.craif.org/ |access-date=2023-06-11 |website=www.craif.org |language=fr}} In 2022, 44,000 students with autism were enrolled in mainstream schools.

• Autism in France
• Eugenics in France

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France