Fact Sheet: Five Years of Closure:
Gaza Patients as Victims of the Referrals System, 14 June 2012

This factsheet serves as an overview of the hardships faced by Gaza patients who seek referral to hospitals outside of the Gaza Strip.
  Patients are subject to intrusive security procedures, arrest, coercion, and interrogation at the Erez Crossing.
  Further, their permits for travel may be denied by the Israeli Security Authority (ISA) even after the patients’ physicians have recommended they be referred and the hospitals have agreed to treat the patients.
  Bureaucratic obstacles may delay the granting of travel permits, often leading to the aggravation of medical conditions and even premature fatalities.
  Child patients are especially impacted by the hardships associated with medical referrals.