NO REAL PROGRESS TOWARDS EQUITY - HEALTH OF MIGRANTS AND ETHNIC-MINORITIES ON THE EVE OF THE YEAR 2000

The paper reviews the available evidence on access to health care and two health outcomes, perinatal mortality and accident/disability, for migrant and ethnic minorities in selected receiving industrialized cou ntries. The health of these communities is analyzed using the entitlem ent approach, which considers health as the product of both the indivi dual's private endowments and the social environment he or she faces. Migrants, especially first and second generations, and ethnic minoriti es often have reduced entitlements in receiving societies. Not only ar e they exposed to poor working and living conditions, which are per se determinants of poor health, but they also have reduced access to hea lth care for a number of political, administrative and cultural reason s which are not necessarily present for the native population. The pap er argues that the higher rates of perinatal mortality and accidents/d isability observed in many migrant groups compared to the native popul ation are linked to their lower entitlements in the receiving societie s. Policies aimed at reducing such health gaps need to be accompanied by a more general effort to reduce inequalities and to promote full pa rticipation of these groups in the mainstream of society.