Falling through the policy cracks: The Peruvian experience in Chile

This session, “Falling through the policy cracks: the Peruvian experience in Chile,” will examine the health care access and health of the Peruvian immigrant community in Santiago, Chile. The flow of Peruvian immigrants to Chile has increased exponentially over the last decade, but Chilean immigration policy and social service infrastructure has not responded to the recent changes in the country´s composition. This lack of current policy, rather than creating barriers to health care for Peruvian immigrants, has left many cracks for them to fall through, making them vulnerable to workplace abuse, to loss of documentation status, to discrimination, to limited access to safe housing, and to long waiting lists for needed care like dental and mental health services. Through analysis of original interviews with Peruvian immigrants and key informants in Santiago completed in 2013 by the author, this presentation will discuss the ways in which the policy of the receiving society, Chile, impedes positive health outcomes among the Peruvian immigrant community. It will further discuss the current policy initiatives at the local and national levels and how these policies may or may not meet the needs of this group.