Public Health Minister urges global action for healthcare access of refugees and displaced persons

The caretaker Public Health Minister, Firas Abiad, emphasized the "necessity for the international community to play its role in providing healthcare for refugees and displaced persons by supporting the national healthcare system, enabling it to respond to the growing needs of everyone, from citizens to residents, including refugees and displaced persons."

Minister Abiad made these remarks while representing Lebanon at the third consultative meeting of the World Health Organization (WHO) on the health of refugees and migrants in Rabat, which concludes its operations on Thursday. The Rabat declaration highlighted the right of refugees and migrants to access healthcare.

During his speech, the Health Minister reaffirmed Lebanon's commitment to continue promoting the human right to health for all. He stated that the ministry has a comprehensive policy that ensures equal access to healthcare services.

He said, "the right to health is a right for all without exception. If it is a right for refugees and displaced persons, then it is undoubtedly an automatic right for citizens as well!"

Minister Abiad further added, "Lebanon has not fallen short in providing healthcare services to residents, who constitute a quarter of its population. Our country is facing immense challenges and ongoing crises while not receiving equivalent support from the international community for its burdened healthcare system, which has been under unprecedented pressure for the past four years."

He called on the conference participants to consider the pressures that burdened Lebanon's healthcare system and stressed the importance of making this system the official channel for any support and assistance rather than relying on parallel paths that may scatter support and weaken the overall public healthcare system, threatening its resilience and continuity.

The Public Health Minister also mentioned the departure of 20 percent of nurses from Lebanon in search of employment opportunities that the healthcare system in Lebanon is no longer capable of providing at the levels seen before the crisis years. He affirmed that "the nursing sector is an example of the setbacks and pressures faced by the healthcare system at all levels."

Expressing gratitude to international partner organizations that have not abandoned Lebanon in its crisis, Minister Abiad stressed that "the healthcare reality in Lebanon necessitates further international support and genuine cooperation to respond to the needs of citizens, refugees, and displaced persons alike."