Adalah to Public Health Fund: Failure to Refer Arab Child to Arabic-Speaking Psychologist is Discriminatory

On 3 April 2006, Adalah sent an urgent letter on behalf of a father and his minor son to the “Clalit Health Services”, a public health fund, and the Ministry of Health demanding that the child be referred to an Arabic-speaking psychologist for his treatment at one of the health fund's child development centers.

After it was discovered that the child had language difficulties, he was referred to a psychologist by a child development center located in the north. As the child does not speak Hebrew, he was sent to continue his treatment with an Arabic-speaking psychiatrist. The health fund initially claimed to be unable to refer the child to such a person since no Arabic-speaking psychologist is employed by the fund. The fund then informed the child's parents that it was not possible to refer their son to an Arabic-speaking psychologist because such services are not subsidized by the fund.

Adalah Attorney Sawsan Zaher argued in the letter that the refusal of Clalit Health Services to refer the patient to an Arabic-speaking psychologist is a result of its failure to employ Arab specialists and is not due to the unavailability of the services. Consequently, Israeli Jewish patients in need of Hebrew-speaking psychologists are able to obtain the relevant health services, whereas Arab patients are not able to do so, even though Arabs and Jews pay equal insurance fees for the services. Therefore, Arab patients do not enjoy access to health services on an equal basis with their Jewish counterparts.

Thus, Adalah argued that Clalit Health Services is discriminating against patients and violating their rights to equality in receiving health services under the National Health Insurance Law – 1984. The law stipulates that every resident and citizen of Israel has the right to receive health services under the law, and that health funds are responsible for providing all those registered with them with the health services to which they are entitled. Article 7(a) of the law and its addendum define the health services to be provided to insurance policy holders. These include consultations, tests and treatment in the field of child development.