The Relationship of Health Insurance to the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma and Respiratory Problems in Children in a Predominantly Hispanic Urban Community
Natalie C. G. Freeman, PhD, MPH,
Dona Schneider, PhD, MPH and
Patricia McGarvey, RN, MS
Natalie C. G. Freeman is with the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, NJ, and the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Piscataway. Dona Schneider is with Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, and the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute. Patricia McGarvey is with Health First, Passaic Beth Israel Hospital, Passaic, NJ.
Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to Natalie C.G. Freeman, 11 Cleveland Circle, Skillman, NJ 08558 (e-mail: nfreeman{at}eohsi.rutgers.edu).
Objectives. As part of an asthma screening study, we evaluatedthe relationship of health care insurance coverage to the diagnosisand treatment of elementary school children for asthma and relatedrespiratory problems from 1998 through 2001.
Methods. A bilingual questionnaire assessing health care coverage,asthma diagnosis, respiratory symptoms, and use of medicationswas distributed to parents of 6235 public and private schoolchildren in grades 2 through 5 in Passaic, NJ.
Results. Responses for 4380 children (70%) revealed disparitiesin health care coverage and asthma diagnosis among racial andethnic groups. Mexican and Dominican children had significantincreases in health care coverage over the 4 years.
Conclusions. The percentage of children with health insurancegrew from 67% in 1998 to 81% in 2001, and the increase was relatedto NJ KidCare. Diagnosis of asthma and treatment were relatedto health care coverage.
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