Citation

Lukemeyer A, Meyers MK, Smeeding T. J. Marriage Fam. 2004; 62(2): 399-415.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, National Council on Family Relations, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1741-3737.2000.00399.x

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

A significant minority of poor families care for children with disabilities and chronic illnesses. This study is among the first to explore private costs resulting from children's disabilities among low-income families. We find that almost half of the sample of California AFDC families with special-needs children incurred some direct, out-of-pocket expenses in the preceding month, and about 20% incurred total costs exceeding $100. We also estimate lost employment income among low-income mothers caring for children with disabilities. We conclude that both out-of-pocket expenses and foregone earnings represent a substantial burden for many low-income families with special-needs children, and we discuss the policy implications of these findings.

Language: en