The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports over 80 million people
are displaced worldwide with approximately 26.3 million categorized as refugees and over
a million residing temporarily in South East Asia. Despite the lack of national legislative
framework in place for refugees and asylum seekers (RAS), Malaysia hosts approximately
178,140 as registered with UNHCR and the majority originate from Myanmar. In this review,
we examine refugees from South East Asia, particularly from Myanmar that have contributed
to the largest influx of refugees to this region with a focus on their health status. The
present study traces barriers to the health care of refugees in the country of asylum and also
the challenges faced by these communities in accessing health services.