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Since the decision of September 4,2003 concerning the simplification of the organisation and functioning of the healthcare system, the former healthcare sectors have been replaced by health territories, which take into account where people live, their state of health, and the places where healthcare is dispensed. This new geography, which often chooses to overlook French administrative borders, is based on epidemiological data bases and socio-economic indicators and makes it possible to describe populations, their state of health and the healthcare offer. It also favours the comparison of geographic zones, serving as a basis for the discussion of issues concerning health inequalities and the measures that should be taken to remedy them.