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Immigrants healthier than U.S. natives despite limited access

Physician Practice Advisor, March 8, 2006

A study by the National Center for Health Statistics found immigrants to be healthier than U.S. natives-less likely to smoke, to be obese, or to have diabetes or heart disease-despite less access to medical care.

Immigrants use less healthcare than native-born Americans and have less reason to. But the longer immigrants remain in the U.S., the less healthy they become, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The study used telephone interviews from 225,429 households conducted between 1998 and 2003.

However, when immigrants become ill, many delay care or turn to bootleg remedies or unlicensed practitioners, according to an article in The New York Times. Many immigrants must face barriers of language, cost, and fear of deportation when seeking medical care. In 2005, 20 states introduced 80 bills to limit access to health services for noncitizens or require that providers inform authorities about patients who have violated immigration laws, according to the Times.

Click here to read The New York Times article and here to read The Atlanta Journal-Constitution report.

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