France has developed a national plan for the prevention and control of an influenza pandemic with the aim of reducing its health impact and its consequences on the economic and social life of the country. The main objectives of the plan are to prepare the country to face an epizootic of avian influenza due to a highly pathogenic virus, to detect the first manifestation of a new flu virus, to curb its spread by adopting early and appropriate public health measures and to protect the French population, as well as French citizens abroad. Ensuring that the population has the best possible access to prevention and care, through the organisation and adaptation of the health system facing a pandemic, is one of the major goals of the plan. The plan, and organisation associated to it, forms the foundation of a coherent and adaptable system which every citizen should feel ownership of.