Work

Immigration Status and Health Insurance Coverage: Who Gains? Who Loses?

Year: 2005

Type: article

Abstract: OBJECTIVES: We compared health insurance status transitions of nonimmigrants and immigrants. METHODS: We used multivariate survival analysis to examine gaining and losing insurance by citizenship and legal status among adults with the Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey. RESULTS: We found significant differences by citizenship and legal status in health insurance transitions. Undocumented immigrants were less likely to gain and more likely to lose insurance compared with native-born citizens. Legal residents were less likely to gain and were slightly more likely to lose insurance compared with native-born citizens. Naturalized citizens did not differ from native-born citizens. CONCLUSIONS: Previous studies have not examined health insurance transitions by citizenship and legal status. Policies to increase coverage should consider the experiences of different immigrant groups.

Source: American Journal of Public Health

DOI: 10.2105/ajph.2003.028514

Authors: Julia C. Prentice, Anne R. Pebley, Narayan Sastry

Institutions: RAND Corporation, University of California, Los Angeles, Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital

Language: English

Topic: Healthcare Policy and Management

Subfield: Economics and Econometrics

Field: Economics, Econometrics and Finance

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Good health and well-being, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Institutes of Health, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development