Public Health Challenges and Barriers to Health Care Access for Asylum Seekers at the U.S.-Mexico Border in Matamoros, Mexico

Abstract

The Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) and border closure to asylum seekers during the COVID-19 pandemic created a humanitarian crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border. This paper outlines the public health challenges and health care access barriers for asylum seekers living in a tent encampment in Matamoros, Mexico resulting from these policies. Thirty participants, including asylum seekers (n=20) and health care professionals (n=10) in the Matamoros asylum camp, were interviewed. Public health challenges included environmental exposures and inadequate infrastructure; poor sanitation and disease control; and limited safety, nutrition, education, and employment. Health care access barriers included lack of continuity of care and emergency services, resource insufficiencies, and interpersonal barriers. Policy responses to address these challenges include outlawing MPP and other immigration policies that infringe on human rights, collaborating with international partners, and implementing more creative and community-based approaches to asylum processing.