The Palestinian health care sector is one of the strongest components of civil society. During the Israeli occupation, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and charitable associations provided vital health care to Palestinians in the absence of state support. The nonprofit sector continues to be the main provider of primary health care for Palestinians. According to the Palestinian NGO Network, NGOs provide 62 percent of all primary health care services and 42 percent of secondary care.
These crucial organizations remain dependent upon outside assistance to meet their operating expenses. In recent years, with international funding decreasing and Israel's ongoing closures of the Palestinian territories, the health sector has been particularly hard hit. Major hospitals in the West Bank and Gaza have been forced to cut back services and nearly one half of the NGO-run clinics have been closed due to the lack of funds. Israeli policies have led directly to many unnecessary deaths as roadblocks, curfews, and closures have denied Palestinians access to medical help.
The Jerusalem Fund assists numerous organizations
struggling to provide primary health care, specialty services, and emergency
medical aid, including hospitals, clinics, health work committees, well-baby
centers, and mammography units.
