HUMA Newsletter - Issue n°22

EU DEVELOPMENTS

 

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

 

Report on 'The reduction of health inequalities" adopted by ENVI committee

 

On 25 January, the ENVI Committee adopted a motion for a resolution on 'The reduction of health inequalities in the EU'. According to this resolution, the European Parliament inter alia "Calls on the Member States to ensure that the most vulnerable groups, including undocumented migrants, are entitled to and are provided equitable access to healthcare; Calls on the Member States to assess the feasibility to support healthcare for irregular migrants by providing a definition based on common principles for basic elements of healthcare as defined by their national legislation;(...) Calls on the Member States to promote access to good quality legal advice and information in coordination with civil society organizations to help the citizens, including undocumented migrants, to learn more about their individual rights; (...) Calls on the Member States to ensure all pregnant women and children, irrespective of their status, are entitled to and effectively benefit from social protection as defined in their national legislation; (...)"

 

The adoption of this report will be on the agenda of Parliament's plenary session of 7 March 2011.

COUNCIL OF EUROPE

 

ECHR: "Belgian authorities should not have expelled asylum seeker to Greece"

The European Court of Human Rights ruled last week in the case of M.S.S. v Belgium and Greece. It found that the Belgian authorities had violated the rights of asylum seeker M.S.S., and an Afghan national by sending him to Greece using the Dublin II regulation.

The Dublin II regulation established a procedure which allows EU country governments to send asylum seekers to the country deemed to be responsible for determining an application for protection under the terms of the Refugee Convention.

The Dublin regulation presumes that the country to which the asylum seeker is to be returned will itself support the individual's human rights and will determine the application for refugee status in accordance with the standards of international law. Lawyers for M.S.S. argued before the Court that asylum procedures in Greece were in such a state of disarray that it could not be presumed that the requirements of international law with respect to refugees were being met.

Sources:

European Court of Human Rights, press release; full text of Judgment

EU Observer, Human rights court deals blow to EU asylum system

 

PACE calls "not to put people at risk of torture or ill-treatment"

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) expressed "great concern" regarding the growing number of cases in which States have ignored the interim measures ordered by the Court, which "has resulted in persons being deported to countries where they are at risk of torture or ill-treatment, despite clear decisions by the Court under Rule 39 not to deport them".

The report entitled "Preventing harm to refugees and migrants in extradition and expulsion cases: Rule 39 indications by the European Court of Human Rights" recalls that "interim measures are binding on the state to which they are indicated", and that "non-compliance with Rule 39 measures is unacceptable". PACE urges Member States to "respond robustly to cases of non-compliance in a way which will mitigate individuals' suffering caused by the breach of their rights" and "act collectively to prevent further cases of non-compliance".

Human Rights Commissioner asks European governments not to detain migrant children

Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammarberg, called on European Governments to change their approach on detaining migrant children, as the present policy is not humane and conflicts with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Thousands of migrant children are detained every year in Europe, having to endure prison-like conditions, despite having committed no crime. This violates the child's right to health, says Hammarberg.

EUROPEAN DECLARATION OF HEALTH PROFESSIONALS 'TOWARDS NON-DISCRIMINATORY ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE'

 

The European declaration of health professionals continues to be signed and disseminated by numerous European and national organisations as well as health professionals, like most recently the European Federation of nurses association or the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (UK). The Declaration was recently presented and disseminated in Slovenia and in Austria. The Declaration is open for signatures until the end of February 2011, and will be handed over to EU and national authorities in March.

NATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS

 

BELGIUM

 

Residence permit for medical reasons: some new rules apply

In January 2011, some new provisions came into force regarding this procedure: applicants have to use a specific detailed form, proof of identity is stricter and applicants have to have an elected domicile. These measures follow the sharp rise of such applications (these have risen from 392 in 2006 to over 8.000 in 2009).

Source : Medimmigrant, Demandes d'autorisation de séjour raisons médicales

 

FRANCE

Residence permit for medical reasons under pressure

Since the late '90s, undocumented migrants who habitually reside in France and who need health care to the extent that the lack of treatment could bring exceptionally serious consequences to health status have the right to stay as long as they cannot effectively benefit from appropriate treatment in their country of origin.

 

The draft French immigration bill has been under discussion at the Senate since the beginning of February, following its reading by France's National Assembly last autumn. Different changes in the law are considered. It is namely considered to replace the ‘lack of effective access to treatment’ by ‘unavailable treatment’. This would bring dramatic change as the availability of treatment in a specific country says very little to nothing as regards the effective access to appropriate treatment. Many factors play a role in this, like the cost of treatment, medical coverage, the existence and accessibility of appropriate health structures, the lack of health staff, shortages of medicines or medical supplies, etc. The National AIDS Council stressed that this change would not only impact the right of the concerned persons but also public health and health expenditures. The Senate rejected the proposition to replace the ‘lack of effective access to treatment’ by ‘unavailable treatment’ but the Commission of the National Assembly reintroduced the amendment and the immigration bill will be voted in plenary session. The restriction of the conditions attached to the permit for medical reasons shows a clear tendency of the government to restrict fundamental rights of migrants.

 

Sources:

 

 

GERMANY

 

Roma undocumented woman dies following deportation to Kosovo

A Roma family originating from Kosovo had lived in Germany since 1999. Despite the serious illness of the mother, the whole family was deported in early December to Kosovo. Just a month later, the mother died of a brain haemorrhage. The mother's own specialist doctor had diagnosed her as suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and neuralgia. Due to these symptoms, she received regular medication and therapy with the support of the Caritas organisation. The local administration in Mayen-Koblenz ordered the deportation of the family. The Trier Administrative Court then upheld the deportation. Mrs. T. was also examined at Düsseldorf Airport by a doctor.

According to the lawyer of the family, the court in Trier upheld her deportation, although the court was fully aware of her condition. "Ignoring humanitarian grounds for denying the deportation, the court preferred instead to rely on thoroughly erroneous information from the German Foreign Office that the woman would be referred to specialists in Kosovo and given immediate treatment. In fact, the conditions on the ground in Pristina were very different. Any claim by German authorities that they could not have anticipated such a lack of medical facilities in Kosovo is completely untenable."

Source: World Socialist Website

 

MALTA

Unpublished reports may hold truth behind prison conditions. Request to visit prison denied

Two crucial reports which may shed light on whether Malta's prison is "inhumane" or "luxurious" remain unpublished as the debate on prison conditions is rekindled.

Source: Times of Malta

PUBLICATIONS

 

Paula A. Braveman, , Susan A. Egerter, Steven H. Woolf, James S. Marks Am J Prev Med 2011;40(1S1):S58-S66 - 2011 American Journal of Preventive Medicine

Rob Clark, Social Science & Medicine (2011), doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2010.12.008

 

The EU Expert Group on Social Determinants and Health Inequalities met on 12‑13 October 2010. It just released its report. All contributions are available online with presentations on the EU level, by the Commission, and on Belgium, Hungary and Sweden.

 

This report pieces together a year of European, national and local news issues on irregular migration to foster a better understanding of the main concerns of human rights of undocumented migrants as well as the multifaceted ways in which civil society throughout Europe is responding to this situation of social exclusion. A part concerns more specifically healthcare issues (and more specifically the situation in Germany, Greece, Sweden, the UK).

 

Undocumented migrants (UDM) gain increasing attention in the EU as a vulnerable group exposed to high health risks with an estimated numbers 1.9 to 3.8 million people residing in the EU in 2008 (7-13 % of the foreign population). While all EU member states ratified the human right to health care, heterogeneous national public health policies open up different frameworks for health care provision which in many cases severely restrict entitlements for UDM to access health care.

"Results show that many EU countries remain in a state of "functional ignorance" ignoring the fact that UDM are denied a fundamental human right. NGOs play a significant role for service provision and supporting UDM to get access to health care, supported by the solidarity of health care professionals who mostly work as volunteers. These findings give evidence of the urgency of making special arrangements to help UDM in Europe. Contradictions between national regulations and human rights should be considered, better information on existing rights and entitlements for both UDM and health care providers is needed as well as better support for the work of NGOs and their cooperation with main stream services. Rather then leaving the burden of provision of health care to individual professionals and NGOs, ways have to be developed to foster effective changes in the overall organisation of healthcare services". Country profiles

 

As the NHS faces up to the realities of the Government cuts, calls to restrict further migrants' access to free NHS services, are growing. This is not something new, but the evidence suggests that excluding migrants would actually increase costs, leave all of us at greater risk of ill health, and undermine the integrity of the NHS

 

  • Poverty and social exclusion in the WHO European Region: health systems respond
    Part I consists of case studies of actions by health systems to address poverty and social exclusion (i.a. on Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, Poland, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Georgia, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Montenegro, Republic of Moldova, Serbia, Slovakia, Switzerland, Tajikistan). Part II consists of Background papers on the health of select groups disproportionately exposed to poverty and social exclusion (Roma, migrants and children).

 

The Migrant Health Guide is intended to be a "one stop shop" for information to support doctors and nurses in assessing and treating migrant patients, in recognition of the fact that these patients sometimes have health needs which are more complex than those of UK born patients. There are over 100 countries profiled in the Migrant Health Guide. Topic pages on each infectious disease are included to guide practitioners in diagnosis and management according to national guidelines. Although the HPA has a primary focus on communicable diseases, the resource has been designed to cover a wide range of health issues. It concentrates on the additional health concerns that should be considered for a migrant patient.

 

As the number of people infected with HIV continues to rise, there is increasing evidence that early treatment reduces morbidity and mortality. However, many people remain undiagnosed. This Guidance provides core principles for the development and implementation of national HIV testing strategies.

This report is also provided in a shorter 'In brief' format and is accompanied by a Technical report (see below) which provides the evidence base for the guidance.

Possible target readership: public health officials, policymakers, people engaged in HIV/AIDS prevention.

Two years after the launch of the Framework action plan to fight tuberculosis in the European Union, a follow-up report has been prepared. It looks at the current European situation regarding TB control, putting it into the global context, and goes on to present a monitoring framework that can be used to assess Europe's progress towards the elimination of TB. The framework comprises four epidemiological and eight operational indicators, all of which relate to the eight strategic areas of the Action Plan.

UPCOMING EVENTS

  • A roundtable organised by MdM Spain: « Sharing experiences: towards a model for universal and accessible health » will take place on the 15th of February with key Spanish stakeholders in Toledo. Click here to see the programme (in Spanish).

 

  • On 28th of February, SIP is organising the symposium "Outside the system. Access to health care for undocumented migrants and asylum seekers in Poland" in Warsaw, targeting the Ministry of health, different Ombudsmen, as well as health professionals and NGOs.

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