State Duma believes it is necessary to make a unified database on labor migrants

The round-table discussion “Legislative regulation of problems with medical aiding for migrants”, initiated by a member of State Duma committee for health protection Salia Murzabaeva, has taken place in Russian State Duma with participation of authority, leading public organizations in sphere of population migration, experts and specialists in sphere of health protection and medical insurance, representatives of international organizations and journalists.

Actual problems concerning medical services for migrants in Russia, problems of medical insurance for migrants and other problems were under discussion there.

“Russia holds the second place in the world by volumes of migration” – Salia Murzabaeva told – “According to information of the Federal Migration Service about 13-14 million foreigners come to the country every year, mainly the labor migrants, coming just for a certain period of time. At that the rates of migration grow – the number of migrants, who have arrived in the country in the first half of the year, exceeds the figures of the same period of time in 2011 by 25%. More than 8 million foreigners have arrived in the country just in the first half of the year”.

The problem of access to medical services for migrants in Russia is considered one of the most burning problems for today as well as the problems of medical examination and insurance. Within the period between 2007 and September 2012 almost 5,5 million foreigners have passed medical examination: about 8,5 thousand patients, suffering AIDS, 15,8 thousand cases of tuberculosis and 19,2 thousand cases of venereal diseases have been discovered. According to Russian Agency for Health and Consumer Rights slightly more than one million migrants have been examined of 2,6 million, having arrived in Russia in 2011. At that a unified information database of labor migrants and their state of health is absent. In opinion of Salia Murzabaeva it is necessary to make such database for making conditions for migrants’ adaptation and for protection of their rights and freedoms.

Corresponding resolutions and recommendations have been approved in the course of the round-table discussion. These recommendations will be directed to federal and regional authorities. Participants of the discussion have also suggested that the centers for medical examination of arriving migrants should be opened in Russia.