Extension and destabilisation of a public health policy

The inclusion of «Maisons Sport-Santé» in the dispositif for medical prescriptions for physical activity

Abstract

From 2020 to 2022, the French ministries of Sport and Health rewarded 436 structures with the “Maisons Sport-Santé” (MSS) label. Regarding their specification, the MSS should organize and coordinate the physical activity provision and the paths of those receiving a medical prescription. However, in many local territories, several MSS rewarded the label and platforms run by public or civil society actors supported by the State in region (ARS and DRJSCS) already carried out actions before the labeling. From a qualitative survey conducted in four metropolitan regions, this article shows how a label may destabilize a local space by jeopardizing the emerging legitimacy and by increasing the number of recognized actors to fulfill the same missions. By returning to the diversity of structures which could reward a label, this article aims to analyze differentiated interpretations of the local level organization and coordination. The evolution of the number of labeled structures and the relations between them also enable to question the procedural impetus of medical prescription of physical activity controls.