Immigration Policy

It is widely known that improving access to ambulatory care helps prevent hospitalizations for ambulatory care sensitive conditions. The Children's Health Initiative of Greater Los Angeles (CHI) formed in order to improve children's access to primary care by increasing Medi-Cal and Healthy Families enrollment. Previous reports showed the CHI reduced the overall rate of preventable hospitalizations in low-income children. This study examines if the CHI similarly reduced preventable hospitalizations for low-income children in Los Angeles County by analyzing hospitalization rates in Los Angeles for lower income compared to higher income children, and calculating hospitalization rates for ambulatory care sensitive conditions.

The LA Healthy Kids coverage expansion was associated with decreases in pediatric services utilization in two county-funded programs for the uninsured. Coverage expansion may have saved over $37 million in uncompensated care for children. For public hospitals and safety net clinics, data suggests that insurance not only improves access but reconfigures where people get care. It also helps reduce uncompensated care and provides new avenues to support the healthcare safety net. These data suggest that state- or jointly-funded insurance expansions help offset the growing burden of uncompensated care among safety net providers while improving utilization and child health status. Journal of Public Health Management Practice. Volume 15, No.4, 2009.

As Congress again tries to draft comprehensive immigration reform legislation, lawmakers should balance the protection of children and the integrity of their families with immigration law enforcement objectives, according to a new Urban Institute study. "Facing Our Future: Children in the Aftermath of Immigration Enforcement" takes a hard look at current immigration policies' impacts on children of unauthorized immigrants, a part of the immigration picture that has so far been left out of focus. The report chronicles the experiences of more than 100 children affected by six worksite raids or targeted arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

This report examines the consequences of parental arrest, detention, and deportation on 190 children in 85 families in six locations, providing in-depth details on parent-child separations, economic hardships, and children's well-being. The contentious immigration debates around the country mostly revolve around illegal immigration. Less visible have been the 5.5 million children with unauthorized parents, almost three-quarters of whom are U.S.-born citizens. Over several years, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) intensified enforcement activities through large-scale worksite arrests, home arrests, and arrests by local law enforcement. The report provides recommendations for stakeholders to mitigate the harmful effects of immigration enforcement on children.

Much of the contentious immigration debate has revolved around the country’s estimated 12 million unauthorized immigrants. Largely invisible have been the 5.5 million children with unauthorized parents. Almost three-quarters of these children are U.S.-born citizens.