Human Rights Watch (HRW) criticised Jordan's decision to end medical protection for Syrian refugees living outside camps in the Kingdom.
The New York-based rights body issued the criticism on Sunday, saying the move marked a step back from a decision by Amman in March to “regularize” the refugees status.
The decision came less than two months after authorities in January moved to revoke the eligibility of Syrians living outside camps to receive subsidized healthcare.
HRW said the new decision will affect 30,000-50,000 Syrians, requiring them to pay the same rates as other foreigners at public hospitals.
More than 650,000 Syrian refugees are registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the world body’s refugee organization, in Jordan.
Bill Van Esvald, senior children's rights researcher at HRW, said Jordan was "pulling the rug out from under refugees on health care that families are already struggling to afford."
Jordanian officials have not explained the reasons for their decision, but have in the past pointed to the exorbitant cost of providing healthcare services to refugees.
According to HRW, Jordanian authorities have spent nearly $2.1 billion (1.7 billion euro) on health services for Syrians since the beginning of the conflict.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
