Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health
Volume 10, Issue 3, 2008, Pages 247-254

The effect of parental immigration authorization on health insurance coverage for migrant Latino children (Article)

Weathers A.C.* , Minkovitz C.S. , Diener-West M. , O'Campo P.
  • a Department of Maternal and Child Health, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, School of Public Health, 402A Rosenau Hall, CB#7445, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7445, United States
  • b Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
  • c Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
  • d University of Toronto and Centre for Research on Inner City Health, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

Abstract

Objective: To examine if immigration authorization among parents is associated with health insurance coverage for migrant Latino children. Data Source: A cross-sectional household survey of 300 migrant families for which one child, aged <13 years, was randomly selected. Results: Most children lacked insurance (73%) and had unauthorized parents (77%). Having an authorized parent or parental stay of more than 5 years in the US were each positively associated with children's health insurance coverage [OR: 4.9; 95% CI: (2.7-8.7) and [OR = 6.7; 95% CI: (3.8-12.0), respectively]. The effect of parental authorization did not persist in multivariable logistic regression analysis; however, more than 5 years of parental stay in the US remained associated with children's insurance coverage [OR = 4.8; 95% CI (1.8-12.2)], regardless of parental authorization. Conclusion: Increased parental familiarity with US health and/or social services agencies, rather than parental authorization status, is important to obtaining health insurance for migrant children. Efforts to insure eligible migrant children should focus on recently arrived families. © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2008.

Author Keywords

Latino health Health insurance immigrants Child health

Index Keywords

Parents Communication Barriers immigrant household logistic regression analysis randomization health insurance human immigration risk assessment Insurance Coverage health service priority journal Insurance, Health Social Work Hispanic Americans family study Cross-Sectional Studies Confidence interval United States Humans Hispanic Adolescent parent male female Socioeconomic Factors Infant Child, Preschool Article child health care Emigration and Immigration Health Services Accessibility Child health survey
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-40649126760&doi=10.1007%2fs10903-007-9072-8&partnerID=40&md5=6782f005b4094aa9f6e4918540ff51ec
DOI: 10.1007/s10903-007-9072-8
ISSN: 15571912
Cited by: 11
Original Language: English