South Africa: Overview of healthcare access for undocumented migrants in South Africa

Healthcare Access for Undocumented Migrants in South Africa: What You Need to Know

Access to healthcare is a fundamental human right enshrined in South Africa’s Constitution. However, the reality for undocumented migrants seeking medical care in the country remains complex and often fraught with challenges. This article provides a clear, factual overview of healthcare access for undocumented migrants in South Africa. It highlights legal rights, barriers faced, and ongoing debates.

Section 27(1) of the South African Constitution guarantees everyone the right to access healthcare services, including reproductive healthcare. This right extends to all individuals within the country’s borders, regardless of nationality or legal status. Specifically, Section 27(3) mandates that emergency medical treatment must not be denied to anyone. This underscoring the country’s commitment to human dignity and health rights.

The National Health Act further supports this by stating that primary healthcare services are available to all people, irrespective of immigration status. Refugees, asylum seekers (with or without permits), permanent residents, and even undocumented migrants are entitled to emergency healthcare services. However, at the very least.

Categories of Migrants and Their Healthcare Rights

  • Refugees and Asylum Seekers: Recognised refugees and those awaiting status have the same rights to healthcare as South African citizens. This includes access to clinics, maternal and child healthcare, HIV and TB treatment, and mental health support.
  • Permanent and Temporary Residents: These groups also have access to public healthcare. Temporary residents are often required to pay fees based on income.
  • Undocumented Migrants: While lacking legal documentation, undocumented migrants retain the constitutional right to emergency medical care. Access to non-emergency services is more limited and often subject to administrative discretion, but denying emergency care is unlawful.

Barriers and Challenges in Practice

Despite clear legal protections, undocumented migrants frequently face obstacles when seeking healthcare:

  • Medical Xenophobia: Many migrants report discrimination and refusal of services by healthcare providers. This is due to their foreign status or lack of documentation. This practice undermines public health and violates constitutional rights.
  • Fear of Deportation: Undocumented migrants may avoid seeking care due to fears. They fear that healthcare providers will report them to immigration authorities, as required by the Immigration Act.
  • Cost and Accessibility: Some migrants are charged fees or denied free services, despite legal provisions. Language barriers and lack of information further complicate access.
  • Policy Conflicts: The National Health Insurance Bill and Immigration Act introduce conflicting requirements. These sometimes restrict undocumented migrants’ access to healthcare. This contrasts with constitutional guarantees.

Access For All?

The South African Constitution guarantees healthcare access for undocumented migrants, especially in emergencies. Yet, challenges such as discrimination, fear, and conflicting policies persist. Continued legal advocacy, public education, and policy reform are essential. They are necessary to ensure that all individuals, regardless of documentation status, can access the healthcare they need.

US: Federal Judge blocks Idaho’s Immigration Law from targeting HIV program

Federal judge temporarily protects HIV program from new Idaho immigration law

A federal judge has temporarily blocked Idaho from applying a new state law meant to prevent unauthorized immigrants from accessing publicly funded assistance to one health program.

U.S. District Judge Amanda Brailsford on Monday issued a temporary restraining order blocking the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare from requiring citizenship status reviews for a federally funded HIV treatment program.

The decision blocks the law’s application to this program until a court hearing in two weeks about whether the court should block the law for longer.

The new law, House Bill 135, took effect Tuesday. It cuts the few publicly funded services that unauthorized immigrants can receive in the state.

The judge’s ruling came days after ACLU of Idaho sued over the new law, alleging the law is unconstitutional by violating equal protection, conflicts with federal laws and even denies federal funds to people eligible under federal law.

US: Lawsuit filed to block Idaho law restricting access to HIV treatment for Immigrants

BOISE — On Thursday, June 26, 2025, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Idaho, the National Immigration Law Center (NILC), and private law firms Nixon Peabody LLP and Ramirez-Smith Law filed a lawsuit against the state of Idaho to stop enforcement of House Bill 135, which is set to go into effect July 1, 2025.

House Bill 135 was passed during the 2025 legislative session to impose new immigration status verification requirements on programs that are not restricted under federal laws, including access to food pantries and soup kitchens, prenatal and postnatal care, vaccines and life-saving medications to treat communicable diseases such as HIV, among others. Prior to the new law, these benefits were available to Idaho residents without having to verify immigration status.

The lawsuit, Davids v. Adams, is seeking a temporary restraining order (TRO) preventing the state from barring access to federally funded HIV medication for immigrants who cannot verify their lawful presence. The TRO is necessary because the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, which administers the federal funding, has determined that on and after July 1, 2025, recipients of this funding must meet the lawful presence criteria outlined in the law. Without access to this medication, many immigrant residents will suffer a variety of serious health issues, including, potentially, death.

The plaintiffs in Davids v. Adams are Dr. Abby Davids, a doctor who treats patients living with HIV, and five immigrant Idahoans living with HIV.

The lawsuit argues that House Bill 135 attempts to circumvent federal law, which allows access to certain federally funded benefits programs, including the federal program that provides HIV medication (known as the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program), without regard to citizenship or immigration status.

“Nobody benefits from barring access to life-saving HIV medication,” said Dr. Abby Davids, practitioner at Full Circle Health. “Both for individual patients and for the health of our community as a whole, all people living with HIV need to be able to access consistent care and treatment. Infections like HIV do not infect people based on their immigration status, and treatment should not be limited by legal status, either. I am genuinely afraid for my patients who currently take medication for HIV; without it, their lives will be in jeopardy.”

“HB 135 is designed to dehumanize our immigrant neighbors by denying them the basic necessities of life — medicine, food, and shelter. It subverts constitutional rights and interferes with federal regulation of immigration,” said Paul Carlos Southwick, ACLU of Idaho Legal Director. “Along with HB 83, this is the second unconstitutional bill we’ve sued to stop this year. It is part of the state’s campaign to displace immigrant residents, which will separate families and inflict lasting trauma. The state’s actions are legally indefensible and morally wrong.”

“This inhumane bill unconstitutionally seeks to block full public access to essential health care, including life-saving HIV care and treatment, and threatens the health and wellbeing of Idahoans across the state,” said Joanna Cuevas Ingram, senior staff attorney at the National Immigration Law Center. “Federal law has expressly exempted the Ryan White HIV AIDS Program, among others, from citizenship and immigration status requirements, ensuring that vulnerable individuals are not denied life-saving care due to their immigration status and to meet nationwide public health goals in reducing HIV transmission. H.B. 135 cannot subvert federal law or the will of Congress. A restraining order and injunction are necessary.”

“The message to immigrant and Latine communities is clear: No matter what kind of person you are, no matter how meaningfully you contribute to Idaho, no matter how hard you struggle to support your family, you are not wanted here,” said Ruby Mendez-Mota, ACLU of Idaho Interim Advocacy Director. “This law isn’t about safety or security, it’s not about limited resources; it’s about making an already vulnerable part of Idaho’s hardworking community feel like they aren’t good enough to be treated with dignity. This fight is not over.”

 

France: Young man with HIV detained without treatment faces expulsion, despite years of residency

For two months, the 23-year-old man has been detained at the CRA in Cornebarrieu (Haute-Garonne), where he has not received his HIV treatment. The associations are asking for a reassessment of his file. Politis was able to reach him.

His voice is weakened, almost inaudible. He seems exhausted. Joes arrived in France at the age of 11, then was adopted by his grandmother. He has 22 today. All his life is here. He went to college and then high school in the North, did two years of art school and then multiplied odd jobs, in catering and sales. In the meantime, he learns that he has HIV. He should have filed his birth certificate at the age of 18 to be officially regularized but he forgot and then covid-19 arrived and the administrations remained closed. He receives an OQTF (obligation to leave French territory).

“I didn’t really take it seriously. Instead of challenging her, I preferred to work, keep a low profile, thinking that things would work out, “says the young man. “If my birth certificate had been filed, they could have registered me in the civil registry and I would be French. From there, everything degrades. The man, detained at the administrative detention center (CRA) in Cornebarrieu, near Toulouse, was to be expelled by plane on Monday, June 23 to his country of origin in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). A country he doesn’t know.

International aid stopped

To avoid being sent back, Cimade advised him to apply for asylum as a matter of urgency to the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (Ofpra). The aim was to re-evaluate his case. A new element was added, as Julie Aufaure, in charge of detention at Cimade, explains: “Care for people with HIV in the DRC is a little better than it used to be. But doubts have returned with the decision by the United States to withdraw its international aid, particularly on health issues”.

More and more foreign nationals living with HIV are being refused entry to the country.It was the Pepfar programme (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), which financed a very large part of access to treatment in developing countries – particularly the DRC – with almost 54%. However, “this decision is not yet measurable, but there are major concerns on the ground. And the professionals in the field know that this is going to become a real problem very, very quickly”, continues Julie Aufaure.

This concern is shared by Adrien Cornec, head of mission for the AIDS charity Aides. He explains that France has had a right to residence on medical grounds since 1990. “But for some years now, the authorities have been calling it into question. We’re seeing more and more foreign nationals living with HIV being refused residence. In particular, people who have been refused residency following applications for renewal. In other words, people who have been here for several years.

He adds: “From one day to the next, these people find themselves in an irregular situation, obliged to leave French territory and go to a country where they haven’t lived for long and are not guaranteed access to care.

“We were rejected everywhere”

Julie Aufaure admits that Joes’ situation is complicated. “We’ve been rejected everywhere, unfortunately, because the prefectural authorities and the European Court of Human Rights base their decision on the decision of the Office’s doctor, who says that the treatment exists.

Joes, for his part, ‘hopes from the bottom of his heart’ for a positive response from Ofpra. Especially as he has been subjected to mockery in the detention centre since his arrival on 6 April. Medical confidentiality has been broken. He has been subjected to ‘moral and physical harassment’ by both ‘officers and detainees’. According to him, the detention centre officers spread the information to everyone in the centre. Some felt sorry for them, others laughed. His fellow detainee added that this stigmatisation was recurrent.

Apart from his roommate, with whom he talks, the young man has withdrawn into himself. “It’s still really a wolf’s world here. I prefer to be on my own. People can fight over a piece of bread or a cigarette. It’s a disgrace”, says Joes.

Worse still, he says he has never received his treatment since his arrest. When he arrived, he had a blood test and a check-up a fortnight later. But since then, radio silence. ‘They nearly put me on the plane, in this state, without me having had the treatment…’. As he is HIV-positive, it is essential that he takes his medication every day. The absence of treatment can have serious effects on his health, such as a drop in his immunity, making him extremely vulnerable to other illnesses. According to the Cimade employee, this is a case that ‘borders on the legal’, but she assures us that the procedure is long and going well.

Action still possible

If the asylum application is rejected or deemed inadmissible, Julie Aufaure plans to lodge an appeal with the national court for the right of asylum (CNDA) and ask the administrative court to suspend the deportation until the court has made its decision, but ‘that’s pretty much the last option for him’, she says.

Adrien Cornec says he is very concerned about ‘these refusals of residence and their accommodations’. Aides and the other associations are calling for the application of the decree of 5 January 2017, which states that ‘in all developing countries, it is therefore not yet possible to consider that HIV-positive people can have access to antiretroviral treatment or to the medical care required for all carriers of an HIV infection as soon as they are diagnosed’.

The Aides representative alerted Senator Anne Souyris. The ecologist sent letters to the prefects of the Pyrenees and Haute-Garonne, and also directly to the Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau. “We don’t expel people who can’t be treated in their own country. There’s a political issue behind it”, she told Politis.

According to the senator, this is a real ‘death sentence’ for Joes, given that international funding has stopped. The senator goes further than the individual case and calls for all the people who could be affected to be automated: “There should be a circular (…). This should also be a textbook case for managing this situation.

Uzbekistan considers mandatory HIV testing for migrants and returning citizens

Uzbekistan Plans to Introduce Mandatory HIV Testing for Migrants

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — The “Milliy Tiklanish” Democratic Party has expressed its support for a draft law that would introduce mandatory HIV testing for certain categories of individuals, according to the press service of the Legislative Chamber.

The party’s backing for the measure stems from several key factors: the growing scale of labor migration, an increase in the number of citizens returning from abroad, and a significant inflow of foreign nationals into Uzbekistan.

In this context, lawmakers emphasized the urgent need to strengthen preventive measures aimed at the early detection of infectious diseases that may pose a threat to public health, as well as to curb their potential spread.

One such measure is the proposed bill mandating medical examinations for Uzbek citizens who have stayed abroad for more than 90 days, as well as for foreign nationals entering Uzbekistan for employment purposes.

The draft law outlines specific groups subject to mandatory HIV testing, including:

— Uzbek citizens aged 18 to 60 who have stayed abroad continuously for 90 days or more;
— Foreign nationals and stateless persons who reside permanently in Uzbekistan;
— Foreign nationals and stateless persons arriving in Uzbekistan to work.

The bill’s authors explained that the 90-day threshold was chosen because this is typically the period in which infectious diseases begin to manifest in the body. During discussions, it was noted that out of the 1.7 million citizens who returned from abroad in 2024, only 434,000 (about 25%) underwent voluntary HIV/AIDS testing, and 1,512 individuals were diagnosed with the infection.

Lawmakers stressed that the absence of mandatory medical screenings in current legislation is one of the main reasons for the low rate of HIV testing among citizens, making the introduction of such a requirement especially urgent.

US: LGBTQ migrants with HIV face systemic failures and neglect in U.S. custody

Queer, Undocumented and HIV Positive

The current political climate is making immigrants feel unwelcome in America.

Immigration continues to be a hot-button issue in the United States. Whether they are seeking asylum from a violent region of the world or coming here for a better life for your family, immigrants (specifically non-white immigrants) face a host of challenges.

LGBTQ immigrants living with HIV, face downright Sisyphean challenges. Undocumented people can’t access any health services without paying out of pocket, which can be monumentally expensive. Even if they are welcomed at a clinic, it’s possible that no one there will be able to speak their language or understand their culture. And currently, there’s the added risk that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers may be staking out the place.

If an LGBTQ person and/or a person living with HIV is taken to jail, it’s very likely that they’ll suffer abuse. A 2024 study published by Immigration Equality, the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) and Human Rights First reports that ICE and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agents at detention centers regularly abuse queer people and people living with HIV who are in their custody.

The study reported that one third of the participants experienced sexual, physical and mental abuse and sexual harassment, while nearly all reported incidents of verbal abuse and threats of violence. A quarter of the participants in the study reported being separated from loved ones, whether a partner, a spouse or sibling, and half of those in the study were kept in solitary confinement. Many had to scramble to find legal representation and sometimes were denied access to their attorney.

Most detainees also stated that they were given inadequate medical care or denied care altogether. Of the detainees living with HIV, most reported neglect or denial of HIV care. Nearly half reported suffering mental health problems, including panic attacks, flashbacks and self-harm. More than half stated that their HIV status, gender identity, sexual orientation, medical or other confidential information was disclosed without their consent.

More disturbing is the fact that many of those immigrants came here seeking amnesty, fleeing violence or other harsh ramifications in their homeland for simply being queer or because they’re living with HIV.

People living with HIV who are trying to emigrate to the United States cannot be denied entry based on their HIV status. (In 2010, President Obama lifted the “HIV ban” that had been in effect for 22 years.) Also, no one can be denied entry solely based on their sexual or gender identity.

As U.S. HIV and LGBTQ communities strive to keep healthy and safe, they must also remember those who need extra protection and care. Our arms must be big enough to hold fast to those who are extra vulnerable.

Russia: Russian lawmaker seeks expanded regional powers over migrants with HIV

Translated with Deepl. Scroll down for original article in Russian.

Il Tumen proposes to expand the rights of regions in relation to migrants with HIV

The federal law should have a clause that allows the regions to take additional measures against migrants with HIV, based on the epidemiological situation.

This opinion was voiced by Deputy Chairman of the State Assembly (Il Tumen) Yuri Nikolaev during a meeting with Anna Kuznetsova, Chief Freelance Specialist in Infectious Diseases in the Federal District of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation.

The unstable political and economic situation in the world leads to the intensification of migration processes and a change in their direction. Legal norms regarding the status of migrants, including those living with HIV, are also changing, the participants of the meeting noted.

Over the past 10 years, many countries have abolished laws restricting the entry and residence of HIV-infected foreign citizens. However, in Russia, the rule on the ban on long-term stay and deportation of foreigners in case of detection of HIV infection in them remains.

Anna Kuznetsova highly appreciated the work of infectious disease specialists of Yakutia and the level of medical care for patients with chronic viral hepatitis.

“Yakutia is one of the disadvantaged regions of the Russian Federation in terms of the incidence of chronic viral hepatitis, and, as a result, liver cirrhosis and primary liver cancer. It is important to note that Yakut doctors have achieved significant success in the fight against this disease, coverage with modern antiviral treatment allows today to treat all patients with viral hepatitis C. It is worth noting that this is a great merit of the Republican School of Hepatologists held annually in the region, thanks to which Yakut medical specialists always keep up with the times, receiving up-to-date information from the leading hepatologists of the country. But there are moments related to the endemic nature of the situation. In Yakutia, hepatitis D, or delta hepatitis, is especially common.

According to the expert, this is a feature of the region – there is a hypothesis about the genetic, ethnic predisposition of indigenous peoples to the hepatitis D virus with the rapid formation of severe liver fibrosis. A high incidence of hepatitis D was recorded in Chukotka, in the republics of Dagestan and Tyva.


В Ил Тумэне предложили расширить права регионов в отношении мигрантов с ВИЧ

В федеральном законе должен быть пункт, позволяющий принимать дополнительные меры регионам в отношении мигрантов с ВИЧ, исходя из эпидемиологической ситуации.

Такое мнение озвучил заместитель председателя Госсобрания (Ил Тумэн) Юрий Николаев в ходе встречи с главным внештатным специалистом по инфекционным болезням в ДФО Министерства здравоохранения РФ Анной Кузнецовой.

Нестабильная политическая и экономическая ситуация в мире ведет к активизации миграционных процессов и изменению их направления. Меняются также и правовые нормы в отношении статуса мигрантов, в том числе живущих с ВИЧ, отметили участники встречи.

В течение последних 10 лет во многих странах отменили законы, ограничивающие въезд и проживание ВИЧ-инфицированных иностранных граждан. Однако в России норма о запрете на долгосрочное пребывание и депортацию иностранцев в случае выявления у них ВИЧ-инфекции сохраняется.

Анна Кузнецова высоко оценила работу инфекционистов Якутии и уровень оказания медпомощи больным хроническими вирусными гепатитами.

«Якутия является одним из неблагополучных регионов Российской Федерации по заболеваемости хроническими вирусными гепатитами, и, как следствие, циррозом печени и первичным раком печени. Важно отметить, что якутские врачи достигли значительных успехов в борьбе с этим заболеванием, охват современным противовирусным лечением позволяет сегодня лечить всех пациентов с вирусным гепатитом С. Стоит отметить, что в этом огромная заслуга ежегодно проводимой в регионе Республиканской школы гепатологов, благодаря которой якутские медицинские специалисты всегда идут в ногу со временем, получая актуальную информацию от ведущих гепатологов страны. Но есть моменты, связанные с эндемичностью ситуации. В Якутии особенно распространен гепатит D, или гепатит дельта».

По словам эксперта, это особенность региона – имеется гипотеза о генетической, этнической предрасположенности коренных народов к вирусу гепатита D с быстрым формированием тяжелого фиброза печени. Высокая заболеваемость по гепатиту D зарегистрирована еще на Чукотке, в республиках Дагестан и Тыва

US: Doctors report dangerous delays in care among migrants fearing deportation

Since President Trump announced plans for mass deportations and rescinded protections for hospitals and clinics, health care facilities have seen a jump in no-shows.

A man lay on a New York City sidewalk with a gun shot wound, clutching his side.

Emily Borghard, a social worker who hands out supplies to the homeless through her nonprofit, found him and pulled out her phone, preparing to dial 911. But the man begged her not to make the call, she said.

“No, no, no,” he said, telling her in Spanish that he would be deported.

Ms. Borghard tried to explain that federal law required hospitals to treat him, regardless of his immigration status, but he was terrified.

“He said, ‘If I go to the emergency department, that will put me on their radar,’” she recalled in an interview recounting the incident.

Across the country, doctors, nurses and social workers are increasingly concerned that people with serious medical conditions, including injuries, chronic illnesses and high-risk pregnancies, are forgoing medical care out of fear of being apprehended by immigration officials. Since the Trump administration announced plans for mass deportations and rescinded a Biden-era policy that protected spaces like hospitals, medical clinics and churches from immigration enforcement, doctors said they have seen sharp increases in patient anxiety and appointment no-show rates.

If the trend continues, health care officials say, the list of consequences could be long: Infectious diseases circulating unnecessarily; worsening health care costs because of untreated chronic illnesses; and dangerous birth complications for women who wait too long to seek help, among others.

In a survey conducted by KFF, a health policy research organization, 31 percent of immigrants said that worries about immigration status — their own or that of a family member — were negatively affecting their health. About 20 percent of all immigrants surveyed said they were struggling with their eating and sleeping; 31 percent reported worsened stress and anxiety.

A White House spokesman did not respond to messages seeking comment. When the administration announced that it was ending protections at hospitals on Jan. 21, a statement from the Department of Homeland Security said the new policy was intended “to enforce our immigration laws and catch criminal aliens.”

Research has shown that immigration crackdowns are linked with poorer birth outcomes and mental health status, lapses in care, and fewer people accessing the types of public programs that reduce illness and poverty overall.

“We’re really creating not just very serious health risks, but economic risks in the long run for our country,” said Julie Linton, a pediatrician and member of the committee on federal government affairs for the American Academy of Pediatrics. “These policies are creating very real fear and uncertainty for people and have a tremendous impact on their ability to function on a day-to-day level.”

Many immigrant communities suffer from high rates of chronic conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes, which, if left untreated, can lead to heart attack, stroke and other grave complications.

That is why doctors worry about patients like Maria, a 47-year-old woman with pre-diabetes, who has been going to the same primary care clinic ever since she arrived in the United States from El Salvador 20 years ago. Even during the first Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration, she continued to seek medical care. But when the protections around hospitals and clinics were rescinded earlier this year, Maria canceled her appointment to have her blood sugar checked, a routine and crucial element of diabetes prevention in patients like her.

“We’re very scared of being in the clinic and having ICE arrive while waiting to be called,” she said in Spanish, referring to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Maria, who asked that her last name not be published, said that she is in a state of “constant anguish.” She said she avoids leaving the house and is working on a plan for the care of her children, who are American citizens, in case she and her husband are deported.

One of their daughters, who is 15, is being treated for fatty liver disease and the other, 11, needs therapy for a developmental condition. Their older daughter has another doctor’s appointment in June. Maria and her husband don’t want to interrupt her care, but they are worried about taking her there themselves. “It’s very complicated,” Maria said. “I can put myself at risk for my children. But if it’s for my own health, I prefer to let it go.”

The consequences of abandoning regular medical care can turn serious quickly, however. Jim Mangia, president of St. John’s Community Health Network in Los Angeles, described one patient with diabetes who stopped showing up for a weekly diabetes education class. When a clinic staff member called the woman, they discovered she was afraid to even go to the grocery store, and had been subsisting for days on tortillas and coffee, he said.

“Thank God we reached her and she came in,” said Mr. Mangia, whose network serves an estimated 25,000 undocumented patients across more than 20 locations. Tests at the clinic showed that her blood sugar had become dangerously high.

“That’s what we’re going to see more and more of,” Mr. Mangia said. “It kind of breaks my heart to talk about it.”

For doctors working in urgent care settings, a drop-off in immigrants has become apparent through some unusual metrics. For example, Dr. Amy Zeidan, an emergency room physician in Atlanta, said that requests for Spanish-language interpretation in her hospital’s emergency department had fallen more than 60 percent from January to February.

Theresa Cheng, an emergency room physician at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, said one of her residents had seen an immigrant patient who had suffered multiple facial fractures from an assault, but had not sought care for more than two weeks. “There is tremendous fear,” Dr. Cheng said.

In late January, Dr. Cheng said, she saw a patient who arrived with severely untreated diabetes. The patient, an undocumented woman, said she had waited to receive help because she was scared. She died that day.

Dr. Carolina Miranda, a family physician in the Bronx, spoke of a patient who had been granted asylum but, fearful of ICE, had failed to show up for a doctor’s appointment about a possible brain tumor.

Similar delays or cancellations are arising among pregnant women and new mothers, according to obstetrician-gynecologists around the country. Dr. Caitlin Bernard, an obstetrician in Indiana, said a patient had skipped her postpartum visit, explaining that she would no longer be leaving her house. On an obstetrics floor in a San Diego hospital, multiple staff members said they had seen an overnight drop-off following the inauguration in the number of immigrant women coming in with acute issues during their pregnancies.

“Obviously those women still exist,” said one doctor, who asked not to be identified because her employer forbade her from speaking publicly on the matter. “I fear it’s going to increase maternal mortality over time.”

Many of the children of immigrant parents who have skipped appointments or left medications unfilled are American citizens. But in mixed-status families, parents who are at risk of deportation are often unwilling to take the risk of going to the clinic or pharmacy.

A pediatrician at a health center that cares for underserved populations on the central coast of California reported a 30 percent increase in no-shows for pediatric appointments. Many of those who do bring their children, and are referred elsewhere for specialty care, such as speech therapy, or an autism evaluation, refuse, saying they are too frightened, said the pediatrician, who asked to be unidentified because he wasn’t authorized to speak publicly.

Dr. Tania Caballero, a pediatrician at Johns Hopkins who sees patients at a health center for underserved groups called Baltimore Medical System, said she had encountered parents who had not wanted to go with their babies to the emergency room out of fear, and parents of children with chronic conditions like cerebral palsy, asthma, and Type 1 diabetes who had told her they have stopped getting vital care.

“I tell patients, ‘I can’t control what happens outside of my space, and I can’t control if somebody comes into my space, But you know me. I have the tools, and I want to help you navigate this journey and do it together,’” she said.

Some parents of children in other dire situations — such as those receiving cancer treatment — are hoping that their child’s condition might actually protect them. Some have asked pediatricians for letters explaining their child’s medical requirements, in hopes that immigration officials who detain them might be convinced that the child needs to stay in the United States to survive.

Dr. Lisa Gwynn, a pediatrician in South Florida who serves families from across the Caribbean and South America, said that her plummeting patient attendance rate is particularly worrisome because patients are missing out on childhood vaccines necessary for preventing diseases like measles, pneumonia and whooping cough.

Dr. Gwynn also worries that without coming to see her, children who have experienced severe trauma before coming to the United States aren’t being connected to social workers or psychologists who can help.

“Imagine your children living in a home where everyone’s scared, and they’ve come to this country to not feel scared anymore,” she said. “We know that stress does not fare well for health. Period. Kids don’t perform as well in school, they have mental health issues, depression, anxiety.”

Some medical facilities have said they will comply with immigration officials. NYU Langone, in New York City, sent a memo to employees warning them not to try to protect illegal migrants. But many other health centers and organizations are finding ways to take a stand, telling staff to display “Know Your Rights” information on the walls and to never record their immigration status in a patient’s medical records.”

Last week, the New England Journal of Medicine published an article by two doctors and a lawyer detailing how physicians can continue to provide health care and lawfully push back in the face of some ICE requests.

The St. John’s clinic network in Los Angeles recently launched an ambitious home visitation program in which a doctor, nurse and medical assistant visit patients where they live to perform exams and deliver medications. They aim to inform all 25,000 of their undocumented patients of this option.

In the New York area, a hospital association suggested designating a “hospital liaison” who can be paged to quickly usher an agent into a private office, and then ask to see a signed warrant, which would then be reviewed by in-house counsel.

At the emergency room of University Hospital, a safety net facility in Newark, staff members hand out cards, in Spanish and other languages, reminding patients of their rights. “You have the right to refuse consent for immigration or the police to search yourself, your car or your home,” the cards state.

But even there, the fear is palpable. Annalee M. Baker, an emergency physician, said she had seen a young woman who said her partner had beaten her until she was unconscious. Covered in welts and bruises, she had waited hours to come in. The reason given: she was terrified that her partner would be deported.

Dr. Baker also treated a minor who had been stabbed; she had needed his parents’ consent to treat him, but the boy had been skittish about providing any details about them, out of fear they might be caught in the immigration dragnet.

Still, it is the people who never come in at all that haunt Dr. Baker the most.

“The tragic message to these people is: Be a shadow and hope that you do not die.”

Sarah Kliff contributed reporting.

Emily Baumgaertner Nunn is a national health reporter for The Times, focusing on public health issues that primarily affect vulnerable communities.

Nina Agrawal is a Times health reporter.

Jessica Silver-Greenberg is a Times investigative reporter writing about big business with a focus on health care. She has been a reporter for more than a decade.

Russia: New bill proposes requiring HIV-free certificates for migrant entry

Translated with Deepl, scroll down for original article in Russian.

The State Duma proposed to ban migrants from entering the Russian Federation without a certificate of absence of HIV.

The head of the State Duma Committee on Labor, Social Policy and Veterans Affairs Yaroslav Nilov developed a bill according to which migrants will be obliged to present a certificate of absence of HIV and tuberculosis when crossing the border with the Russian Federation.

“A citizen must have… medical insurance, test results confirming the absence of infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B and C, as well as the absence of syphilis and tuberculosis…” – says the explanatory note of the document, which was read by TASS.

If the law is passed, it will obligate migrant workers to present a test for the absence of drugs in the blood when entering the Russian Federation, made no earlier than 72 hours in advance. According to Mr. Nilov, this will reduce the burden on health care and prevent the entry of migrants with dangerous diseases.


В ГД предложили запретить мигрантам въезжать в РФ без справки об отсутствии ВИЧ

Глава комитета Госдумы по труду, социальной политике и делам ветеранов Ярослав Нилов разработал законопроект, согласно которому мигранты будут обязаны при пересечении границы с РФ предъявлять справку об отсутствии ВИЧ и туберкулеза.

«Гражданин при пересечении границы обязан иметь… медицинскую страховку, результаты анализов, подтверждающих отсутствие инфицирования вирусом иммунодефицита человека (ВИЧ), гепатита В и С, а также отсутствие заболевания сифилисом и туберкулезом…» — говорится в пояснительной записке документа, с которым ознакомился ТАСС.

Если закон примут, он обяжет трудовых мигрантов предъявлять при въезде в РФ тест на отсутствие в крови наркотиков, сделанный не ранее чем за 72 часа. По словам господина Нилова, это снизит нагрузку на здравоохранение и предотвратит въезд мигрантов с опасными заболеваниями.

UAE: New Dubai regulations define traveler obligations and health responsibilities

Dubai’s new public health law could affect your next trip — here’s how

His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, has issued a new public health law in Dubai.

Law No. (5) of 2025 on Public Health in Dubai seeks to minimise health risks by stopping the spread of illnesses and putting restrictions on travel for those with confirmed communicable diseases.

Set to come into force 90 days after it is published in the Official Gazette, the new law supersedes any previous legislation that may conflict with its provisions.

The new law states that any travellers must adhere to official health protocols, provide requested information at Dubai’s entry points and report any suspected or confirmed communicable diseases.

Anyone who is infected or suspected of having a communicable disease must avoid contact that could spread their illness. The new law states that you must refrain from travelling or moving, except to healthcare facilities, without the approval of the Dubai Health Authority.

If you are travelling while ill, then you must observe hygiene measures such as wearing masks and maintaining physical distancing in line with approved guidelines.

The law prohibits concealing infections or spreading them, whether intentionally or unintentionally, and mandates individuals to comply with measures to prevent the spread of disease, following guidelines issued by relevant authorities and healthcare providers.

The new public health law has established a comprehensive framework to promote public health and safeguard community and environmental well-being. It outlines a focus on disease prevention, healthcare, food and product safety and sustainable efforts to improve overall quality of life.

It aims to minimise any health risks affecting individuals and communities in Dubai through precautionary measures and evidence-based practices that align with both local and international health regulations.

The new law promotes greater coordination and collaboration at all levels to strengthen preparedness and response to deal with any public health challenges in the emirate.

It also aims to increase public awareness of health risks and prevention methods by fostering a sustainable environment that attracts investment.

The new public health law has also formally defined the roles and responsibilities of relevant authorities in managing communicable diseases.

These authorities include local government entities tasked with overseeing public health in Dubai, such as Dubai Health Authority, Dubai Municipality, the Dubai Environment and Climate Change Authority, the Dubai Academic Health Corporation and the Dubai Corporation for Ambulance Services.

The law has also outlined the responsibilities of relevant authorities in food safety, specified obligations for food-related establishments and set out some rules for consumer product activities.

It has detailed responsibilities in areas such as built environmental health, labour accommodations, pest control and the Dubai Health Authority‘s role in managing health risks, emergencies and crises.