U. of Michigan poll: Recession toughest on poor and uninsured kids

New polling data from the University of Michigan Health System shows that as parents face increasingly difficult financial decisions in this recession, it's often their children's health that gets short shrift -- especially in uninsured and lower-income families.

The data, gathered in May as part of the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health, shows 44 percent of families’ financial situations have worsened in the last six months. To make ends meet, many have cut back on extras (65 percent), applied for government health coverage (24 percent), applied for free or reduced-price lunch programs (27 percent), and delayed taking their children to the doctor (11 percent) or dentist (16 percent).

"In particular, we found that if a family’s financial situation had worsened over the last 6 months and their children were uninsured, 40 percent of those parents had delayed taking their children to the doctor," Matthew M. Davis M.D., director of the poll, said. "This is a particularly concerning statistic when we consider that some of these kids whose care is being delayed may be particularly vulnerable or at risk for serious health problems."

In addition, 40 percent of the parents polled indicated their children (aged 5-17) had some or a lot of stress as a result of worries about their family’s finances. Fifty-three percent of parents reported that their teens (aged 13–17) had stress due to the family’s financial situation.

Common symptoms of stress in children include acting out, abdominal pain and headaches.

"We found that stress from financial worries affected families of lower incomes more than families of higher incomes," according to Davis, who is associate professor of pediatrics, internal medicine, and public policy at the University of Michigan Medical School and Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. "So much so that families of the lowest income level--namely making $30,000 per year or less--were more than twice as likely to report their kids had stress as families of the highest income group making $100,000 or more per year."

Get the full report here