MoSD Warns of Heightened Vulnerability Facing Thousands of Families Affected by Chronic and Rare Diseases in Gaza
More than 13,700 cancer, kidney failure, thalassemia, and celiac disease patients require an integrated social protection response
Ramallah – The Ministry of Social Development warned of the worsening living and social conditions facing thousands of families with members suffering from cancer, kidney failure, thalassemia, celiac disease, and other chronic and rare diseases in the Gaza Strip. The Ministry stressed that these families face heightened vulnerability due to the intersection of health needs with displacement, loss of income, rising poverty, food insecurity, and difficulty securing both basic and specialized necessities.
The Ministry emphasized that protecting these groups cannot be limited to addressing their health needs. Rather, it requires an integrated response within the social protection system that takes into account the additional burdens borne by patients and their families and ensures that these burdens are considered when assessing vulnerability and determining priority for social and humanitarian assistance and services.
Data issued by health and humanitarian organizations indicate that the Gaza Strip has more than 11,000 cancer patients, approximately 1,200 kidney failure patients, 237 thalassemia patients, and around 1,288 people with celiac disease. In addition to their health needs, these groups face growing social and economic burdens amid displacement, loss of income, and difficulty securing their specialized necessities.
The Ministry explained that general humanitarian assistance, despite its importance, may not adequately meet the specialized needs of some of these families. This calls for more flexible and responsive interventions, including cash assistance, appropriate food assistance, and vouchers, alongside case management, referrals, and linking families with available services in coordination with the relevant authorities and partners.
As part of its responsibility within the social protection system, and despite limited resources, the Ministry is working to identify the most vulnerable families, manage their cases, and link them with available services. It is also working to prioritize families that include individuals with chronic and rare diseases within social, cash, and relief assistance programmes, in accordance with eligibility and vulnerability criteria, while cooperating with partners to develop food assistance that responds to the specialized needs of these groups.
The Ministry stressed the importance of incorporating health conditions and their associated social and economic burdens into social vulnerability indicators, particularly given the additional expenses they may entail, the loss of household income, or the need for a family member to stop working in order to care for the patient. These factors increase the likelihood of families falling into deeper poverty and becoming more dependent on assistance.
The Ministry called on the World Food Programme, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and international and humanitarian organizations to strengthen integration between social protection, food security, and the health response. It also urged them to ensure that the specialized needs of these families are incorporated into humanitarian response plans, including the provision of specialized foods, supplements, and essential supplies, as well as expanded funding for cash assistance and vouchers that enable families to secure their patients’ needs when such items are available.
The Ministry of Social Development stressed that addressing these groups solely from a health perspective does not reflect the full extent of their vulnerability. Illness is now compounded by poverty, displacement, food insecurity, and loss of income, requiring an urgent and integrated international response that combines healthcare and social protection, protects patients and their families from further deterioration, and safeguards their dignity and resilience.