A/HRC/23/41 37. The fear of detention and deportation prevents migrant workers from accessing health care,71 which may endanger their health and that of the broader population, thereby undermining public health justifications for detention and deportation. Further, employers may misuse laws providing for detention and deportation to exploit migrant workers. 72 Fear of detention and deportation renders migrant workers more vulnerable and unable to enjoy the right to health and its underlying determinants. To fulfil the right to health of migrant workers, States should try to develop alternative detention policies more in line with the right to health.73 Additionally, without referral for counselling and treatment, deported migrant workers may also face difficulties in accessing health facilities, goods and services upon return to the sending State. C. Access to health facilities, goods and services Discrimination 38. Ensuring the availability, accessibility, acceptability and quality of health facilities, goods and services on a non-discriminatory basis, especially for vulnerable populations like migrant workers, is a core obligation under the right to health. Non-discrimination requires that regular and irregular migrant workers be equally entitled to freedoms and entitlements available to nationals of States. Access to health care in many receiving States, however, is dictated by restrictive immigration policies and public perceptions of „non-deserving‟ migrant workers, particularly those in an irregular situation.74 In the wake of the global economic crisis and associated austerity measures, States have legislated limitations on previously available health-care benefits for migrant workers.75 Such limitations are contrary to States‟ obligation to desist from taking retrogressive measures that impact on health. 39. Further, equitable distribution of health facilities, goods and services is required to ensure that the most vulnerable are not disproportionately burdened beyond their means. It is regrettable that in many States, discriminatory laws largely undermine health care for migrant workers, especially irregular migrant workers. 76 Even where legally required of employers, health-care coverage may cover only basic services and may be inadequately enforced by authorities.77 Consequently, migrant workers are forced to pay for health-care expenses, including emergency care, at rates that are sometimes disproportionately high compared to their income. 78 40. The principle of non-discriminatory access is eroded when irregular migrant workers are not allowed to access non-emergency health-care services. Notably, mental illness is 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 12 FACHC, Farmworkers in the Southeast:Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississipi (November 2011), available from http://www.fachc.org/pdf/Farmworkers%20in%20the%20Southeast.pdf. HRW, For a Better Life: Migrant Worker Abuse in Bahrain and the Government Reform Agenda (October 2012). Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, Unlocking liberty: A way forward for U.S. immigration detention policy (n.d.). Sarah Willen, “Migration, “illegality” and health: Mapping embodied vulnerability and debating health-related deservingness”, Social Science & Medicine, vol. 74, Iss. 6 (March 2012) pp. 805–811. IOM, “Health in the Post-2015 Development Agenda: The importance of migrants‟ health for sustainable and equitable development”, Position paper (2012), p. 4. Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM), Access to Health Care for Undocumented Migrants in Europe (2007), p. 7. CARAM Asia, Submission to CMW for the development of a general comment on migrant domestic workers (28 August 2002), p. 5. PICUM, Access to Health Care, p. 8 (see footnote 76).