Executive summary Public protests have surged across the world in recent years, often led by grassroots movements seeking to challenge social and economic injustices, express discontent and demand transformative change from their governments. Economic inequity led to the 2018 “Yellow Vests” protests in France, and echoes of these protests were felt in the 2019 Chile protests, the […]

In response to reports that the Biden administration is considering reinstating the policy of detaining migrant families, the following statement is attributable to Ranit Mishori, MD, MHS, senior medical advisor for Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) and professor of family medicine at Georgetown University School of Medicine: “There is no ‘safe’ duration of detention for […]

More than 190 organizations and individuals, including health practitioners and human rights experts, today sent a letter to United Nations experts in response to the United States Supreme Court decision that repealed the constitutional right to abortion. The letter documents how abortion restrictions imposed in the wake of the court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson […]

NEW YORK – In response to this afternoon’s announcement by United States President Joe Biden of new “border security” measures along the southern border, which would expand expedited removals under Title 42, the following statement is attributable to Michele Heisler, MD, MPA, medical director at Physicians for Human Rights and professor of internal medicine and […]

In response to news that the Biden administration would appeal a federal court’s decision that invalidated the Title 42 border expulsion order, the following quote is attributed to Michele Heisler, MD, MPA, medical director at Physicians for Human Rights and professor of public health and internal medicine at the University of Michigan: “The Biden administration’s […]

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) welcomes U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan’s decision to vacate Title 42, an order that was used to expel asylum seekers more than 2.4 million times with no due process into dangerous conditions in Mexico.   Title 42 – invoked in March 2020 by the Trump administration purportedly to defend against the […]

WASHINGTON — The American Civil Liberties Union and Physicians for Human Rights renewed calls today for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to end the practice of force-feeding detained people, and to end its reliance on mass immigration detention, after the Intercept obtained and released footage of the federal agency force-feeding a man engaged in a […]

Originally published by STAT, September 27, 2022. The California State Legislature has sent a bill to Gov. Gavin Newsom that strengthens discipline for doctors who knowingly spread Covid-19 misinformation. Legislation like this is sorely needed across the country. More than two years into the pandemic, Covid-19 misinformation still runs rampant. Some comes from doctors spreading lies about unproven — […]

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) welcomes the decision by Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) to remove the invalid diagnosis “excited delirium” from the BART Police Department policy manual and all written reports.   BART’s policy change was informed by PHR’s 2022 report, “‘Excited Delirium’ and Deaths in Police Custody: The Deadly Impact of a Baseless Diagnosis,” […]

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) welcomes yesterday’s U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas’s decision to lift the injunction that required the continued implementation of the Migrant Protection Protocol (MPP), also known as Remain in Mexico, which forced people seeking asylum in the United States to wait in often-dangerous environments in Mexico. We […]

Medical experts and human rights advocates from Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) filed an amicus brief with the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit today highlighting key public health evidence in support of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) efforts to rescind Title 42 border expulsions. Since the policy was […]

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) welcomes today’s United States Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling in Biden v. Texas, holding that the Biden Administration can end the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), also known as the “Remain in Mexico” policy. Enacted by the Trump administration in January 2019, MPP is a disastrous policy that has placed tens of […]

In response to the decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization by the U.S. Supreme Court, the following statement is attributable to Payal Shah, J.D., director of PHR’s Program on Sexual Violence in Conflict Zones:   “PHR condemns the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which rolls back reproductive rights in […]

In response to news that Judge Robert Summerhays of the U.S. District Court in Lafayette, Louisiana ruled that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cannot move forward a plan to rescind Title 42 border expulsions, the following quote is attributable to Michele Heisler, MD, MPA, medical director at Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) […]

In advance of the second Global COVID-19 Summit, co-hosted by the United States, Belize, Germany, Indonesia, and Senegal, the following statement is attributable to Michele Heisler, MD, MPA, medical director at Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) and professor of public health and internal medicine at University of Michigan:  “As the world surpasses 15 million deaths […]

In response to reports that the United States Supreme Court has prepared an initial majority draft decision which would overturn abortion rights, the following statement is attributable to Payal Shah, J.D., director of PHR’s Program on Sexual Violence in Conflict Zones:  “If confirmed, the Supreme Court’s move to overturn Roe v. Wade would represent one […]

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) welcomes and congratulates Dr. Ashish Jha on his new position as the White House Coronavirus Coordinator, which he began this month. PHR is grateful for Dr. Jha’s service on our Board of Directors and wishes him well in this critical role. Dr. Jha takes up this new role at a […]

Twelve leading medical and public health experts across the United States called on the Biden administration and Congress today to repeal the Title 42 border expulsions order as planned on May 23. In response to a Tuesday Axios report that the Biden administration is considering a delay of the repeal of the order in response […]

Following Monday’s ruling by a federal judge in Florida to strike down masking requirements on airplanes, trains, buses, and other public transportation, public health experts are concerned this decision sets a precedent in undermining the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) authority to guide and direct response to public health emergencies now and […]

Three to four years after being separated from their children by the U.S. government, deported asylum-seeking parents continue to endure severe psychological trauma, according to a new investigation published today by Physicians for Human Rights (PHR). The report’s findings underscore the U.S. government’s unfulfilled obligation to provide remedy, rehabilitation, and redress to survivors of family […]

Tres o cuatro años después de haber sido separados de sus hijos por el gobierno de los EE. UU., los padres y madres solicitantes de asilo que fueron deportados continúan padeciendo un trauma psicológico severo, según la más reciente investigación publicada hoy por Physicians for Human Rights (PHR). Los hallazgos de esta investigación subrayan la […]

Three to four years after being separated from their children by the U.S. government, deported asylum-seeking parents continue to endure severe psychological trauma.

Today the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced its plans to rescind the Title 42 order, which the U.S. government has used to expel asylum seekers and other migrants almost two million times since its enactment in March 2020. While welcoming the long-delayed announcement, medical experts and human rights advocates from Physicians […]

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) reiterates its call on the White House and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to immediately rescind the Title 42 order, through which the U.S. government has expelled asylum seekers and other migrants more than one million times over the past two years.   On March 11, the CDC […]

A new investigation published today by Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) finds that “excited delirium” – often cited as a cause of death in fatal encounters with law enforcement – is not a valid medical diagnosis and should no longer be used by clinicians, attorneys, or law enforcement.   “‘Excited Delirium’ and Deaths in Police […]