Immigrants and health care: sources of vulnerability.
Immigrants have been identified as a vulnerable population, but there is heterogeneity in the degree to which they are vulnerable to inadequate health care. Here we examine the factors that affect immigrants' vulnerability, including socioeconomic background; immigration status; limited English proficiency; federal, state, and local policies on access to publicly funded health care; residential location; and stigma and marginalization. We find that, overall, immigrants have lower rates of health insurance, use less health care, and receive lower quality of care than U.S.-born populations; however, there are differences among subgroups. We conclude with policy options for addressing immigrants' vulnerabilities.
Derose
Kathryn Pitkin
KP
RAND, Santa Monica, California, USA. derose@rand.org
Escarce
José J
JJ
Lurie
Nicole
N
D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000145:classification / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005192:Family Health / Q000208:ethnology; D006291:Health Policy; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D054625:Healthcare Disparities; D006801:Humans; D019458:Insurance Coverage; D017057:Medically Uninsured / Q000208:ethnology*; D011203:Poverty / Q000208:ethnology; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012934:Social Isolation; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D035862:Vulnerable Populations / Q000208:ethnology*