EU’s new migration rules would significantly restrict migrants’ access to healthcare, undermining core medical ethics. Civil society groups are calling on EU lawmakers to block the proposal. They demand the bloc’s policy protect current migrants, not deter future ones.
In November, the European Parliament’s Civil Liberties Committee is to start shaping its negotiating position on the proposed Returns Regulation, while the EU Council aims to adopt its stance by the end of 2025. In a report published this week, the International Network of Doctors of the World and PICUM (Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants) caution that the proposal undermines the right to health, privacy, and medical confidentiality — pillars of both EU law and international human rights standards.
Right to health for migrants
“History shows where persecution leads, and this Return Regulation risks repeating those mistakes: it isolates people, blocks access to healthcare, and undermines public health. EU lawmakers must stop it,” said Louise Bonneau, advocacy officer at PICUM and co-author of the report.
According to PICUM, the European Commission’s draft would allow authorities to collect, access, and exchange personal and medical data about third-country nationals between EU member states (Article 38) and with non-EU countries for return operations (Articles 39 and 41). Decisions on transferring such sensitive data would rest with national authorities—and, in some cases, Frontex—with no mention of independent medical oversight, data protection authorities, or judicial review. “When data are shared outside the EU, people risk having their personal information misused in countries with weak human rights protections,” the report warns.
Both PICUM and Médecins du Monde Belgium argue that the proposal clashes with Article 8 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which guarantee privacy and data protection for everyone in the EU, including undocumented people.
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Medical ethics at stake
“Turning healthcare into a tool of immigration control is a profound breach of medical ethics and undermines patient safety,” said Federico Dessi, head of Médecins du Monde Belgium. He also warned that expanding immigration detention—despite well-documented harm to mental and physical health—would only heighten risks for migrants.
If people fear that seeking care could expose them to deportation, they will delay or avoid treatment, with devastating consequences for individual and public health. — Federico Dessi, Executive Director of Médecins du Monde Belgium
“Doctors and healthcare workers are bound by confidentiality, but using sensitive health data for deportations or imposing mandatory medical checks directly violates that duty. If people fear that seeking care could expose them to deportation, they will delay or avoid treatment, with devastating consequences for individual and public health,” Mr Dessi pointed out.
The European Court of Human Rights has repeatedly ruled that the collection or retention of health data by public authorities, even if unused, interferes with privacy and breaches medical confidentiality. “We urge EU lawmakers to reject any measures that compromise medical integrity and the right to health for all,” Mr Dessi insisted.
Well-being under threat
Beyond data protection concerns, the draft regulation could have far-reaching effects on migrants’ health and well-being. According to the report, it foresees an expansion of detention across the EU—including for minors—largely ignores minimum detention standards, and broadens the grounds for forced deportations. This includes coercive measures and transfers to third countries where people may face torture or other forms of violence.
