Health services for asylum seekers and refugees in Europe: consequences for policymaking.

Reception and integration of asylum seekers and refugees are high on the political agenda in most European countries. Reception conditions, including the provision of health care, differ considerably between countries. The European Commission tries to harmonise the reception standards in the European countries. This is done for example by launching the EU Reception Conditions Directive (Directive 2003/9/EC), which defines minimum standards on the reception of asylum applicants. This directive states that member states shall ensure that applicants (asylum seekers) receive the necessary health care, which shall include at least emergency care and essential treatment of illness. However, asylum seekers and refugees are considered to be vulnerable populations due to a host of pre and post-migration risk factors and it is unclear what is meant by essential treatment. What is and could be the role of public health services in ensuring adequate levels of care and cure for asylum seekers? An exchange of experiences from different countries is envisaged as well as a discussion about what, from a public health point of view, can be done to influence politics and policy. (aut. ref.)