Chronic illness among poor children enrolled in the temporary assistance for needy families program.
OBJECTIVE
This study assessed chronic child illness among recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits and poor families not receiving benefits.


METHODS
Data from the 1998 National Health Interview Survey were used to examine chronic child illness, enrollment in TANF, health insurance status, and selected access indicators.


RESULTS
One quarter of TANF-enrolled children had chronic illnesses. Unenrolled children were 3 times as likely as TANF-enrolled children to be uninsured. Among the chronically ill, 31.7% of unenrolled and 14.3% of enrolled children experienced gaps in insurance coverage that were associated with access barriers.


CONCLUSIONS
Welfare policies should consider the effects of chronic illness and gaps in insurance coverage on the health of poor children.
Department of Pediatrics, Boston Medical Center and Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Mass 02118, USA. pwise@bu.edu
Paul H
PH
Wise
Nina S
NS
Wampler
Wendy
W
Chavkin
Diana
D
Romero
D000293:Adolescent; D000385:Aid to Families with Dependent Children / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D019352:Censuses; D002648:Child; D002662:Child Health Services / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002669:Child Welfare; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology*; D019988:Children with Disabilities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005191:Family Characteristics; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000191:economics*; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D019458:Insurance Coverage; D016015:Logistic Models; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009309:National Center for Health Statistics, U.S.; D011203:Poverty; D011640:Public Policy; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology