Health financing for asylum seekers in Europe: three scenarios towards responsive financing systems

This subsection discusses the applicability and limitations of instituting financing mechanisms to fund healthcare provision for asylum seekers at the level of the European Union. To illustrate the need for such arrangements, we outline the current dilemma addressing health needs of refugees in Europe, where the financial burden lies disproportionately on countries in the periphery of the region. Taking an economic perspective, we discuss the lack of incentives for countries of the European Union to honour health as a human right and provide universal health coverage for forcibly displaced persons. We propose three financing scenarios, building upon existing financial mechanisms at the EU level, to increase financial solidarity among member states and provide a responsive financing mechanism, catering to the changing size and composition of the asylum-seeking population. We discuss these financing options both in terms of their ability to meet the requirements of “good” financing systems and in light of dominant political discourses of security, austerity, and eligibility. We argue that financial reform is sorely needed in order to address the health needs of an increasingly mobile population but that financing options must be accompanied by political discourses and citizen engagement in order to succeed.