Today’s publication of crucial health equity research in the journal Pediatrics is sparking broad dialogue, as it illustrates that Latinos under eighteen years old in states having greater discriminatory policies have a higher propensity to experience certain harmful physical and mental health conditions.
Data for this project was analyzed from the National Survey of Children’s Health for the period ranging from 2016 to 2020. The researchers evaluated 17,855 Latino kids, more than half of whom are from an immigrant family and roughly thirty percent of whom live under the federal poverty threshold. Each state was ranked based on their level of discrimination, as measured by several factors relating to immigrant policies such as health services, access to rental housing, immigration policy enforcement and employment. The researchers also incorporated data from the American National Election Study to evaluate the extent of prejudicial positions toward immigrants.
The research found that Latino children in states exhibiting a greater prevalence of these policies and positions presented a 1.24 times higher likelihood to possess multiple mental health conditions, while also having a 1.13 times higher likelihood of developing a chronic physical health condition.
This study’s results serve not only as an important reference point for the health of Latino children in states with more anti-immigrant laws and sentiment, but also as a call for greater awareness of the impact that such policies and attitudes may have on individuals of all ages in those states. Health equity advocates also contend that such research underscores the importance of education, awareness and solutions to address the health inequities that can result from anti-immigrant policies and attitudes.
The published research can be found here.
