Citation

Rostad WL, Klevens J, Ports KA, Ford DC. Child. Youth Serv. Rev. 2019; 107: e104718.

Affiliation

Division of Violence Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4770 Buford Hwy, Atlanta, GA, 30341, United States.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.childyouth.2019.104718

PMID

32322131

PMCID

PMC7176404

Abstract

Children who grow up in poverty are at risk for various poor outcomes. Socioeconomic policies can shape the conditions in which families are raising children and may be effective at reducing financial strain and helping families obtain economic sufficiency, thereby reducing risk for poor health outcomes. This study used data from two surveys conducted in the US, the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79) and the NLSY79 Young Adult survey to determine whether the U.S. Federal Child Tax Credit (CTC), a socioeconomic policy that provides tax relief to low- and middle-income families to offset the costs of raising children, is associated with child well-being, as indicated by whether the child had injuries requiring medical attention and behavioral problems. Fixed-effects models, accounting for year and state of residence, detected a lower likelihood of injuries requiring medical attention (OR = 0.58, 95% CI [0.40, 0.86]) and significantly fewer behavior problems (b = -2.07, 95% CI [-4.06, -0.08]) among children with mothers eligible to receive a CTC, but only when it was partially refundable (i.e., mothers could receive a tax refund for a portion of the CTC that exceeds their tax liability) for families making as little as $3000 a year. Tax credits like the CTC have the potential to alleviate financial strain among families, and consequently, may have impacts on injury and behavior problems.

Language: en

Keywords

Behavior problems; Child injury; Poverty; Socioeconomic policies