Humanitarian bottom league? Sweden and the right to health for undocumented migrants

European Journal of Migration and Law

Volumn 12, Issue 2, 2010, Pages 215-240

  Alexander, Shannon ^a  

^a NONE

Author keywords

asylum seekers; cultural competence; emergency care; immediate care; mental health; migrant women; PTSD; right to health; Sweden; undocumented migrants

Indexed keywords

EID: 77956374347     PISSN: 1388364X     EISSN: 15718166     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1163/157181610X496885     Document Type: Article

References (179)

1. Ibid,.
2. Fergus Walsh, "Children Are Sweden's Priority," BBC, available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/ 7202694.stm. Last visited 7 August 2009.
3. International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, U.N. Doc. A/6316, 993 U.N.T.S. 3 (1966) art. 2 [hereinafter ICESCR]; International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, 660 U.N.T.S. 195 (1969) [hereinafter CERD]; Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, U.N. Doc. A/34/46 (1981) [hereinafter CEDAW]; Convention on the Rights of the Child, U.N. Doc. A/44/49 (1990) preamble [hereinafter CRC]; Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, 189 U.N.T.S. 150 (1954) [hereinafter Refugee Convention].
4. Läkare Utan Gränser (Médecins Sans Frontière), Experiences of Gömda in Sweden: Exclusion from Health Care for Immigrants Living Without Legal Status (2005), p. 8.
5. UNHCR Executive Committee Conclusion No. 80 (XLVII) (1996).
6. S. Castles, 'Why Migration Policies Fail', 27:2 Racial and Ethnic Studies (2003), pp. 208-210.
7. S. Loue, 'Immigrant Access to Health Care and Public Health: An International Perspective', 17:2 Annals of Public Health (2008).
8. Global Equity Gauge Alliance, Global Watch 2: An Alternative World Health Report (2008) p. 63.
9. Ibid., p. 63.
10. See also J. Bustamante, World Health Organization, Health of Migrants: Report of Secretariat; Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants, E/CN.4/2006/73 (2006).
11. Global Equity Gauge Alliance, supra note 8, p. 63.
12. Ibid,.
13. Henri Frederic Amiel.
14. Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, General Comment 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, U.N. Doc. E/C.12/2000/4 (2000) para. 4 [hereinafter CESCR General Comment 14].
15. B. Toebes, 'The Right to Health', in A. Eide, C. Krause and A. Rosas (eds.), Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Dordrecht: Martinus Nijhoff, 2001), p. 174.
16. ICESCR, supra note 3, art. 12.
17. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, U.N. Doc A/810 (1948) art. 25(1).
18. Ibid,.
19. CESCR General Comment 14, supra note 13, para. 34.
20. Ibid., para. 35.
21. Ibid., para. 36.
22. World Health Organization, Commission of Social Determinants of Health, Health Equality Through Action on the Social Determinants of Health (2008) pp. 34, 39, 152-53, 171-72.
23. Ibid., para. 12.
24. CESCR General Comment 14, supra note 13, para. 12(a).
25. Ibid,.
26. Ibid,.
27. CESCR General Comment 14, supra note 13, para. 12(b).
28. Ibid., para. 12(c).
29. Ibid,.
30. See generally, T. Cross et al., Towards a Culturally Competent System of Care: A Monograph on Effective Services for Minority Children Who Are Severely Emotionally Disturbed (1989).
31. Ibid,.
32. Ibid,.
33. CESCR General Comment 14, supra note 13, para. 12(d).
34. Ibid., para. 10.
35. Ibid., para. 47.
36. Ibid., para. 43.
37. CESCR General Comment 14, supra note 13, para. 44.
38. Ibid., para. 59.
39. Ibid,.
40. Ibid, para. 13;
41. M. Magdalena Sepúlveda, The Nature of Rights Under the Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (New York: Intersentia, 2003), p. 264.
42. Ibid., supra note art. 3.
43. A. Eide, 'The Human Rights System and the Place of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights', in A. Eide, C. Krause and A. Rosas (eds.), Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Dordrecht: Martinus Nijhoff, 2001), p. 21.
44. Sepúlveda, supra note 39, p. 260.
45. Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, General Comment 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, U.N. Doc. E/C.12/2000/4 (2000) para. 4 [hereinafter CESCR General Comment 14].Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Conclusions and Recommendations: Switzerland, U.N. Doc. E/C.12/1/Add.30 (1998) para. 6, available at http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/ esc/switzerland1998.html. Last visited 14 December 2009
46. Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Conclusions and Recommendations: Luxembourg, U.N. Doc. E/C.12/1/Add.22 (1997), para. 6, available at http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/esc/luxem bourg1997.html. Last visited 14 December 2009.
47. Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, General Comment No. 20, Non-Discrimination in Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (art. 2, para. 2), U.N. Doc. E/C.12/GC/20 (2009) para. 30. [hereinafter General Comment 20].
48. General Comment 20, supra note 44, para. 34.
49. CESCR General Comment 14, supra note 13, para. 12(b).
50. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, General Recommendation No. 24: Women and Health, U.N. Doc. A/54/38 at 5 (1999), para. 6.
51. A. Haider, 'Out of the Shadows: Migrant Women's Reproductive Rights Under International Law', 22 Georgetown Immigration Law Journal (2008), p. 448.
52. Ibid., para. 21.
53. Ibid,.
54. Ibid,.
55. CEDAW, supra note 3, art. 12(2).
56. CRC, supra note 3, art 24(2)(d).
57. ICESCR, supra note 3, art. 12(2)(a).
58. CRC, supra note 3, art. 24 (1).
59. Ibid., arts. 24 (2)(a), (b), (c), (f ).
60. Ibid., art 27.
61. CRC, supra note 3, art. 39.
62. Swedish Institute, Swedish Health Care Factsheet (2007), p. 2.
63. Secrecy Act (1980:100).
64. Discrimination Act (2008:58).
65. Health and Medical Services Act (1982:723).
66. Law Concerning Health Care for Asylum Seekers and Others (2008:344) (translation by Magnus Engelin).
67. Secrecy Act, supra note 66, ch. 1, sec. 1.
68. Ibid., ch. 7, sec. 1(a).
69. Discrimination Act, supra note 61, ch. 1, sec. 1.
70. Ibid., supra note 61, ch. 1, sec. 4.
71. Health and Medical Services Act, supra note 62, sec. 2.
72. Ibid., secs. 2a(1)(2) and (3).
73. Ibid., sec. 2(a)(4).
74. Ibid,.
75. Health and Medical Services Act, supra note 62, sec. 2(c).
76. Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, August 2006, Health and Medical Care in Sweden, Factsheet No. 16.
77. Health and Medical Services Act, supra note 62, secs. 3, 18.
78. Läkare Utan Gränser, supra note 4, p. 9.
79. Ibid,.
80. Kammarens Protokoll, Riksdagens Protokoll, 2007/08:115, Tisdagen den 20 Maj Kl. 12:00-22:51, 9 § Lag om hälso- och sjukvård åt asylsökande m.fl. at ANFs. 3 and 63.
81. Ibid., ANFs. 2 and 3.
82. Law Concerning Healthcare for Asylum Seekers and Others, supra note 63, sec. 4(2).
83. Ibid., sec. 4(4).
84. Ibid., sec. 4.
85. Ibid., sec. 5.
86. Law Concerning Healthcare for Asylum Seekers and Others, supra note 63, sec. 6.
87. Ibid,.
88. Discrimination Act, supra note 61 ch. 7, sec. 1.
89. Hälso- och Sjukvårdens Ansvarsnämnd ("HSAN") Website, www.hsan.se/eng/hsan.asp, last visited 5 April 2009.
90. I. Eckerberg, HSAN Employee, Phone Conversation, 11 March 2009.
91. L. Mansnérus, Patientforsakring, Email Communication, 25 February 2009.
92. Ibid,.
93. Patientförsäkringen, If You Are Injured in the Healthcare System, www.patientforsakring.se/ pdf/patientinfo- engelska.pdf, pp. 4-6. Last visited 5 April 2009.
94. Ibid,.
95. H. Castañeda, 'Illegality as risk factor: A Survey of Unauthorized Migrant Patients in a Berlin Clinic', 68 Social Science and Medicine (2009), p. 1553.
96. S. Loue, 'Immigration Access to Health Care and Public Health: An International Perspective' Annals of Health Law (2008), pp. 219-220.
97. Läkare Utan Gränser, supra note 4, p. 6.
98. Ibid,.
99. Castañeda, supra note 92, p. 1557.
100. United Nations Association of Sweden et al., Alternative Report to Sweden's Seventeenth and Eighteenth Periodical Reports to the Committee on the International Convention on Ethnic and Racial Discrimination (July 2008), p. 52.
101. M. Taloyan et al., 'Psychological Distress Among Kurdish Immigrants in Sweden', 36 Scandinavian Journal of Public Health (2008), pp. 194-95.
102. S. Bäärnhielm et al., 'Historical Reflections on Mental Health Care in Sweden: The Welfare State and Cultural Diversity', 42 Transcultural Psychiatry (2005), p. 402.
103. P. Hunt, Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Right of Everyone to the Enjoyment of the Highest Attainable Standard of Physical and Mental Health, Mission to Sweden, 28 February 2007, A/HRC/4/28/ Add.2, para. 44.
104. Nordic School of Public Health, Children Living in Hiding Today and Tomorrow: A Seminar About Health and Human Rights, 28 January 2009, p. 5.
105. P. Hunt, supra note 100, para. 76.
106. G. Bodegård, 'Life-threatening Loss of Function in Refugee Children: Another Expression of Pervasive Refusal Syndrome?', 10 Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry (2005), p. 340.
107. Ibid., p. 339.
108. Ibid,.
109. Ibid,.
110. Bodegård, supra note 103, p. 339.
111. Ibid., p. 338.
112. Ibid,.
113. Ibid., p. 340.
114. Bodegård, supra note 103, p. 340.
115. Ibid,.
116. Ibid,.
117. Ibid,.
118. Bodegård, supra note 103, p. 347.
119. Ibid., p. 349.
120. Ibid,.
121. Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants, Access to Healthcare for Undocumented Migrants in Europe (2007), p. 91 [hereinafter PICUM].
122. Läkare Utan Gränser, supra note 4, p. 16.
123. Ibid., p. 7.
124. Ibid,.
125. Ibid., p. 9.
126. PICUM, supra note 118, p. 89.
127. Ibid,.
128. Law on Professional Activity in Health Care Area (1998:531) § 11; Läkare Utan Gränser, supra note 4, p. 10.
129. PICUM, supra note 118, p. 92.
130. Ibid,.
131. Migrationsverket, Migration Policy, , visited on 2 April 2009.
132. Läkare Utan Gränser, supra note 4, p. 9.
133. Ibid,.
134. Ibid,.
135. PICUM, supra note 118, p. 90.
136. P. Vinthagen Simpson, Hospitals Offer Care to Illegal Immigrants, 17 May 2008, www.thelocal. se/11824/20080517/. Last visited 5 April 2009.
137. Läkare Utan Gränser, supra note 4, p. 10.
138. Kammarens Protokoll supra note 77 ANF. 17.
139. CESCR General Comment 14, supra note 13, para. 12(b).
140. Ibid., para. 69.
141. Ibid,.
142. P. Hunt, supra note 100, para. 75.
143. Ibid., para. 44.
144. Läkarens Etiska Regler i Nutid, bengtdahlin.se/HoSstoryn1/filer-del- 1/etiska-regler.html. Last visited 5 April 2009.
145. Statens Medicinsk-etiska Råd, 3 October 2008, Skrivelse om Hälso- och Sjukvård för Asylsökande, Gömda och Papperslösa, www.smer.se/Bazment/289.aspx. Last visited 5 April 2009.
146. Ibid,.
147. Ibid,.
148. Ibid,.
149. G. Asp, Lund University Medical Student, E-mail correspondence 27 February 2009.
150. J.R. Betancourt, 'Cultural Competence and Medical Education: Many Names, Many Perspectives, One Goal', 81(6) Academic Medicine (2006), 499.
151. Ibid,.
152. C. Wachtler and M. Troein, 'A Hidden Curriculum: Mapping Cultural Competency in a Medical Programme', 37 Medical Education (2003), p. 861
153. citing The Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare, Mångkulturell Sjukvård: En Lärarhandledning för Läkarutbildninge [Multicultural Health Care: a Guide for Medical School Teaching] (Stockholm: NBHW Report 1999).
154. Wachtler and Troein, supra note 149, p. 861.
155. Ibid., p. 866.
156. Ibid,.
157. Email Correspondence with G. Asp, supra note 146.
158. R. Arvidsson, Lund University Medical Student, Email Correspondence 1 March 2009.
159. L-L. Ozolins and K. Hjelm, 'Nurses Experiences of Problematic Situations with Migrants in Emergency care in Sweden', 7 Clinical Effectiveness in Nursing (2003), p. 84.
160. Ibid,.
161. Ibid,.
162. Ibid,.
163. S. Hultsjö and K. Hjelm, 'Immigrants in Emergency Care: Swedish Healthcare Experiences', 52 International Nursing Review (2005), p. 283.
164. Ibid., p. 279.
165. Ibid., p. 283.
166. Ibid,.
167. Ozolins and Hjelm, supra note 155, p. 84.
168. Ibid,.
169. Hultsjö and Hjelm, supra note 159, p. 283.
170. Eckerberg, supra note 87.
171. Ibid,.
172. HSAN Website, supra note 86; I. Eckerberg, supra note 87.
173. Eckerberg, supra note 87.
174. J. Bhabha, 'Arendt's Children: Do Today's Migrant Children Have a Right to Have Rights?', 31 Human Rights Quarterly (2009), p. 443.
175. Kammarens Protokoll, supra note 77, ANF. 52.
176. Ibid,.
177. Ibid,.
178. Kammarens Protokoll, supra note 77, ANF. 52.
179. UNHCR, The Rights of Non-Citizens, HR/PUB/06/11 (2006).