Citation

Barnert ES, Chung PJ. Pediatrics 2018; 142(3): ePub.

Affiliation

RAND Health, RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, California.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, American Academy of Pediatrics)

DOI

10.1542/peds.2018-1923

PMID

29987167

Abstract

In the article “Health Care Use and Health Behaviors Among Young Adults with History of Parental Incarceration,” Heard-Garris et al1 use the nationally representative longitudinal survey “Add Health” to demonstrate strong associations between parental incarceration before age 18 years and higher rates of forgone health care and unhealthy behaviors in early adulthood (ages 25–32 years). This work is valuable given the scope of parental incarceration and the social vulnerabilities of many justice-involved families. Overall, >2.7 million US children (1 in 28; roughly 1 per school classroom or dozens per general pediatrician’s average panel) have a parent who is currently incarcerated.2 For African American children, the proportion is 1 in 9.2 On any given day, approximately one-half of federal and state prisoners are parents of children <18 years of age.3 Moreover, parental incarceration is disproportionately high among poor children, and for immigrant children, concomitant parent status concerns may dramatically heighten risks.2

Given the limitations of the data set, there is a lack of clarity on the precise mechanisms linking parents’ incarceration with their children’s worsening long-term health and higher rates of forgone care. The authors speculate that mechanisms may relate to disruptions in a child’s family unit. These disruptions may result in both direct psychological damage and indirect damage through the overburdening ...

Language: en