50 HEALTHCARE: AMPLIFIED CHALLENGES With the severe multidimensional crisis Lebanon is going through, the vulnerability of stateless persons with regard to access to healthcare has significantly increased, knowing that even Lebanese citizens are also facing growing hardships in that area. Fig 11. Do you have access to healthcare? 48% 38% 52% 62% Box 14. Healthcare coverage in Lebanon 41% 64% Stateless 59% 36% Lebanese Stateless Greater Beirut Lebanese Mount Lebanon Yes No The survey showed better chances for stateless persons in Greater Beirut to access healthcare, with a rate of 52% able to access it. This proportion fell to 36% for stateless living in Mount Lebanon. Greater Beirut has a higher density of civil society organizations offering aid services and medical support, such as Tahaddi center providing medical aid for stateless in Hay el Gharbi (informal settlements with Dom population). As a result, 80% of the respondents who reside there stated having access to medical care. Among the respondents who are unable to obtain healthcare, 44% in Greater Beirut and 53% in Mount Lebanon pointed to their lack of identification documents, whereas respectively 19% and 12% blamed this on their financial situation. World Health Organization (2016). Lebanon’s Health Profile 2015. Despite many attempts to implement universal health coverage (enlisted as an official 2030 goal under the National Health Strategy Vision), granting basic coverage to all Lebanese, the situation today disregards the right of the population to access healthcare. The National Social Security Funds (NSSF) is considered the largest social insurance provider in the country, but its recent demise due to the financial crash has left greater proportions of Lebanese uncovered, particularly in healthcare and old-age benefits. These benefits are granted through the realm of formalized employment, so even working stateless persons who overwhelmingly engage in informal sectors, won’t enjoy any of these services. The MoPH does subsidize heart-related illnesses and medications related to cancer treatments, but stateless persons, irrespective of their categories, are not included in these programs due to their lack of national documentation. © 2023 Siren Associates. All Rights Reserved.