Relationships between welfare status, health insurance status, and health and medical care among children with asthma.
OBJECTIVE
This study evaluated the relationships between health insurance and welfare status and the health and medical care of children with asthma.


METHODS
Parents of children with asthma aged 2 to 12 years were interviewed at 6 urban clinical sites and 2 welfare offices.


RESULTS
Children whose families had applied for but were denied welfare had more asthma symptoms than did children whose families had had no contact with the welfare system. Poorer mental health in parents was associated with more asthma symptoms and higher rates of health care use in their children. Parents of uninsured and transiently insured children identified more barriers to health care than did parents whose children were insured.


CONCLUSIONS
Children whose families have applied for welfare and children who are uninsured are at high risk medically and may require additional services to improve health outcomes.
Department of Pediatrics, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX 78229-3900, USA. woodp@uthscsa.edu
Pamela R
PR
Wood
Lauren A
LA
Smith
Diana
D
Romero
Patrick
P
Bradshaw
Paul H
PH
Wise
Wendy
W
Chavkin
D000328:Adult; D000385:Aid to Families with Dependent Children / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000592:standards*; D001249:Asthma / Q000191:economics* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D002648:Child; D002662:Child Health Services / Q000191:economics / Q000592:standards*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000191:economics; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D019458:Insurance Coverage / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008484:Medicaid / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000592:standards*; D017057:Medically Uninsured / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008603:Mental Health; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires