Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2018 Oct 8;3(5):e001031.
doi: 10.1136/bmjgh-2018-001031. eCollection 2018.

Towards universal health coverage: including undocumented migrants

Kristine Husøy Onarheim  1 , Andrea Melberg  1 , Benjamin Mason Meier  2 , Ingrid Miljeteig  1
Affiliations

Towards universal health coverage: including undocumented migrants

Kristine Husøy Onarheim et al. BMJ Glob Health. .

Abstract

As countries throughout the world move towards universal health coverage, the obligation to realise the right to health for undocumented migrants has often been overlooked. With unprecedented millions on the move - including refugees, asylum seekers, internally displaced persons, and returnees - undocumented migrants represent a uniquely vulnerable subgroup, experiencing particular barriers to health related to their background as well as insecure living and working conditions. Their legal status under national law often restricts access to, and affordability of, healthcare services. While striving to ensure health for all, national governments face challenging priority setting dilemmas in deciding: who to include, which services to provide, and how to cover out-of-pocket expenses. Building on comparative experiences in Norway, Thailand and the United States - which reflect varied approaches to achieving universal health coverage - we assess whether these national approaches provide rights-based access to affordable essential healthcare services for undocumented migrants. To meet the shared Sustainable Development Goal on universal health coverage, the right to health must be realised for all persons - including undocumented migrants. To ensure universal health coverage in accordance with the right to health, governments must evaluate laws, regulations, policies and practices to evaluate: whether undocumented migrants are included, to which services they have access, and if these services are affordable. Achieving universal health coverage for everyone will require rights-based support for undocumented migrants.

Keywords: Right to health; human rights; policy making; priority setting; undocumented migrants; universal health coverage.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: KHO, AM and IM have volunteered as medical doctors who provide care by, or in association with a healthcare centre for undocumented migrants in Bergen, Norway. BMM has no competing interests to declare.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Towards universal health coverage in Norway: coverage for the general population and undocumented migrants.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Towards universal health coverage in Thailand: coverage for the general population and undocumented migrants.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Towards universal health coverage in the United States: coverage for the general population and undocumented migrants.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Ghebreyesus TA. All roads lead to universal health coverage. Lancet Glob Health 2017;5:e839–e840. 10.1016/S2214-109X(17)30295-4 - DOI - PubMed
    1. UNHCR, 2018. UNHCR statistics - Trends at a glance. Available from: http://www.unhcr.org/globaltrends2017/ [accessed 28 Jun 2018].
    1. International Organization for Migration, 2018. Global migration trends factsheet. Available from: http://gmdac.iom.int/global-migration-trends-factsheet [accessed 15 Feb 2018].
    1. Avato J, Koettl J, Sabates-Wheeler R. Social Security regimes, global estimates, and good practices: the status of social protection for international migrants. World Dev 2010;38:455–66. 10.1016/j.worlddev.2009.10.003 - DOI
    1. World Health Organization. Promoting the health of refugees and migrants. Draft framework of priorities and guiding principles to promote the health of refugees and migrants. Report by the Secretariat. Geneva: World Health Organization, 2017.