Asylum policies ‘increasing HIV risk’

The government’s asylum policies may be contributing to the spread of HIV, according to MPs.

The government’s asylum policies may be contributing to the spread of HIV, according to MPs. The all-party parliamentary group on Aids singles out the practice of dispersing asylum seekers across the UK and detaining those whose applications have been refused for particular criticism. It says these policies mean many people with HIV do not receive the medical care they need. And it suggests the policies also increase the risks of these people passing on HIV and other serious communicable diseases to others. Figures from the Health Protection Agency show that three out of four heterosexuals who were diagnosed with HIV last year had arrived in the UK from Africa. In its report published on Thursday, the group calls for major changes to the way asylum seekers are dealt with. Mother and childIt says the current system does not adequately provide for people with HIV and in many cases may exacerbate poor health. The group heard evidence from Dr Ade Fakaoya, a consultant in HIV and sexual health at Newham General Hospital in London. “The report’s findings underline the urgent need to ensure that HIV positive people get consistent quality care to protect individual and public health”Leigh Daynes, Refugee Action He had been providing medical care to a pregnant woman who was HIV positive. She was dispersed out of London by the National Asylum Support Services (NASS). When doctors managed to track her down she had already given birth. Her child is now also HIV positive. Dr Fakaoya said the woman could have been given drugs to reduce the risks of her passing on the virus to her child if she had remained in London. The report also includes evidence from other doctors who claimed the NASS consistently disregarded their opinions and advice when it came to asylum seekers with HIV. Dr Chris North, a HIV specialist in North London, told MPs: “Many of our patients who are dispersed we have never been notified officially about. We have never had a single letter from NASS.” Labour MP Neil Gerrard, who chairs the group, criticised the policies of dispersing and detaining asylum seekers. “We found that such policies can negatively impact upon the physical and mental health of asylum seekers with HIV and increase the risk to public health of HIV transmission. “In most cases, we found there to be a complete lack of communication between the Home Office, NASS and social services, which may be putting asylum seekers in situations where they can become more ill or develop resistance to treatment.” Migration factorsThe committee also rejected suggestions that all immigrants to the UK should be screened for HIV. “It was felt that the UK Government cannot look to exclude individuals on the basis of poor health,” said Mr Gerrard. “Instead, we should be looking to address the factors which push people to migrate in developing countries: poverty, access to healthcare, conflict, the impact of environmental adversity and social exclusion.” The UK charity Terrence Higgins Trust welcomed the report. “If you disperse people with HIV outside major clinical centres it will damage their health,” a spokeswoman told BBC News Online. “It will also put undue pressure on clinics and local services that are already struggling to cope. “We would also be against mandatory HIV testing. It doesn’t work, it further stigmatises HIV and it is a waste of money.” Leigh Daynes of Refugee Action said: “The report’s findings underline the urgent need to ensure that HIV positive people get consistent quality care to protect individual and public health.” (Source: BBC, Wednesday, 9 July, 2003, 23:41 GMT 00:41 UK)