The municipal registry of vulnerable people
Every French municipality keeps a nominal registry of vulnerable people, provided for by article L121-6-1 of the Code de l'action sociale et des familles and detailed by decree n°2004-926 of September 1, 2004. It allows municipal services or the CCAS (municipal social action centre) to quickly contact registered people when a heatwave plan or another exceptional event is triggered.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Who can register? | People aged 65 and over living at home, people 60 and over recognised as unfit for work, and adults with disabilities. |
| Who applies? | The person themselves, or a third party: child, caregiver, neighbour, doctor. |
| How? | Town hall or CCAS, by phone, mail, online or in person. Free of charge. |
| What it triggers | Contact from municipal services as soon as the alert plan is activated, to check in or offer help. |
If your relative lives in a different town from you, registration is done with their town hall, not yours.
The high-vital-risk patient (Enedis)
If your relative depends on an electric medical device, a second scheme exists. The high-vital-risk patient (PHRV) status is aimed, according to Enedis, at people on a ventilator with a battery autonomy of 4 hours or less per day, and children on home parenteral nutrition.
To obtain it, you must register with the regional health agency (ARS) of your department; the request is renewable every year. Once registered, for a scheduled outage (works), Enedis notifies individually by mail five days in advance, with the expected date and time. This scheme doesn't cover accidental outages, which by nature remain unpredictable.
The medication reserve
Beyond the two official schemes, a few simple checks reduce the risk of an outage or a few days of isolation:
- A reserve of a few days of treatment, on top of the usual refill.
- A copy of the current prescription, useful if an on-call pharmacy needs to dispense the treatment urgently.
- The contact details of the GP and the usual pharmacy, written on paper.
Helping from a distance
When you don't live nearby, registering on the two official registries remains the foundation: they're what triggers a local contact in an event. On top of that, a simple network helps bridge the hours before an official service steps in:
- A trusted neighbour, informed of the situation, who agrees to be a local contact.
- A call or message agreed at a fixed time on weather-alert days, to check that everything's fine without waiting for an emergency.
- Useful numbers gathered in one place: town hall, CCAS, doctor, a neighbour, another family member.
Mistakes to avoid
- Waiting for the person to register themselves. Many elderly people don't know this registry exists; a child or caregiver can do it on their behalf.
- Confusing the two schemes. The municipal registry covers general vulnerability (age, isolation); the PHRV status specifically covers dependence on an electric medical device.
- Forgetting to renew the PHRV status. It must be requested again every year with the ARS.
- Relying on a single contact. An absent neighbour on the day leaves the person without a relay if no other solution was planned.
See at a glance that your relative is okay
The official registries above remain the foundation: they trigger a local response. On top of that, if your relative installs the app themselves, LASTLINE can help you:
- add them to your household, with a simple status they confirm themselves ("safe");
- see their location, only if they've shared it with the household;
- receive an SOS with their location and battery level if they trigger the alert.
This assumes your relative installs and uses the app themselves: LASTLINE doesn't monitor anyone without their knowledge.
Add my relative to my householdFrequently asked questions
How do I register a parent on the municipal registry of vulnerable people?
By contacting the town hall or CCAS (municipal social action centre) where your relative lives, by phone, mail, online or in person. Registration is free and can be done by a third party (child, caregiver, doctor) if the person can't do it themselves.
Who can register on the municipal registry?
People aged 65 and over living at home, people aged 60 and over recognised as unfit for work, and adults with disabilities, under article L121-6-1 of the Code de l'action sociale et des familles.
What is a high-vital-risk patient?
An Enedis status for people on a ventilator with 4 hours or less of battery autonomy per day, or children on home parenteral nutrition. Registration is done through the regional health agency (ARS), and renews every year.
Is a high-vital-risk patient notified before a power outage?
For a scheduled outage (works), Enedis notifies individually by mail five days in advance, with the expected date and time. This scheme doesn't cover unplanned, accidental outages.
Sources
- Légifrance, Article L121-6-1 of the Code de l'action sociale et des familles.
- Légifrance, Decree n°2004-926 of September 1, 2004.
- Enedis, High-vital-risk patient: how to register.
- Regional health agency, High-vital-risk patient: steps to follow.
Exact procedures (forms, contacts) may vary between municipalities or regional ARS: check with your relative's own.