The Health and Well-Being of Young Children of Immigrants

Randy CappsMichael FixJason OstJane Reardon-AndersonJeffrey S. PasselURBAN INSTITUTE THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF Young Children of Immigrants THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF Young Children of Immigrants Randy CappsMichael FixJason OstJane Reardon-AndersonJeffrey S. PasselURBAN INSTITUTE THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF Young Children of Immigrants This report was made possible by generous financial support from the Foundation for Child Development. Additional support was provided by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.Cover photograph © Susie Fitzhugh.Copyright © 2004. The Urban Institute. All rights reserved. Except for short quotes, no part of this book may be reproducedor used in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the Urban Institute. The Urban Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan policy research and educational organization that examines the social,economic, and governance problems facing the nation. The views expressed are those of the authors and should not beattributed to the Urban Institute, its trustees, or its funders. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viiSUMMARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ixINTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1IMMIGRATION TRENDS AND IMPACTSOver One-Fifth of Young Children Have Immigrant Parents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Two-Thirds Live in Six States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Most Are Citizens, Many Have Undocumented Parents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Half of Parents Are Recent Arrivals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Half of Immigrant Children and Two-Thirds of Immigrant Parents Were Born in Latin America . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Policy Implications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10POVERTY, FAMILY STRUCTURE, AND PARENTS’ WORKPoverty Rates Higher among Children of Immigrants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Children of Immigrants More Likely to Be in Two-Parent Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Immigrant Families Less Likely to Have Two Working Parents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Wages Lower for Immigrant Parents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Policy Implications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16RISK FACTORS FOR POOR SCHOOL PERFORMANCE AMONG YOUNG CHILDREN OF IMMIGRANTSThree in Ten Children of Immigrants Have Parents without a High School Degree . . . . . . . 17Six in Ten Have Limited English Proficient Parents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18One-Third Live in Linguistically Isolated Households . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Parent-Child Interaction Lower in Immigrant Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Policy Implications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20HARDSHIP AND BENEFIT USE AMONG YOUNG CHILDREN OF IMMIGRANTSHigh Levels of Economic Hardship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Children of Immigrants Less Likely to Receive Public Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Policy Implications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24vCONTENTS HEALTH STATUS AND INSURANCE COVERAGEChildren of Immigrants Twice as Likely to Be in Fair or Poor Health and Lack a Usual Source of Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Twice as Likely to Be Uninsured, but Rate Falls from 1999 to 2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Policy Implications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28CHILD CARE ARRANGEMENTSYoung Children of Immigrants Less Likely to Be in Child Care. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29Gap in Child Care Narrows for Children with Working Parents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30Gap in Center-Based Care Most Pronounced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30Policy Implications . . . . . . .