Health

Venezuelan legislation is based on the principle of universality in health, which ensures that refugees as well as asylum-seekers/refugees have the right to access the services of the national health system at all levels, without distinction.

Access to primary, secondary, and tertiary health care is guaranteed by the Organic Law on Health and the Constitution without major obstacles or express restrictions for refugees. Likewise, access to care and health services for persons with disabilities is guaranteed without major obstacles under the relevant law.

However, in other areas of health, the lack of specific regulation introduces certain difficulties. Although the nutrition programs of the National Institute of Nutrition are intended to serve populations with special needs, the law does not directly mention refugees, which means additional effort is required to ensure their inclusion in these programs.

In addition, although refugees have the right to file administrative or judicial remedies for any violation of their right to health, such protection is pursued through ordinary procedural laws. The absence of special procedures or mechanisms in refugee law introduces complications when taking legal action to defend this right.

Similarly, access to sexual and reproductive health services, as well as mental health services, while covered by general health principles and guidelines, lacks detailed and specific mechanisms for refugees, which creates certain practical difficulties and limits the full availability of these services.

In short, while the right to health is a universal principle applied directly to refugees in the Venezuelan system, the lack of regulatory development in areas such as nutrition, sexual and reproductive health, and mental health generates certain operational difficulties.