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WEDNESDAY, Oct. 7, 2020 (HealthDay News) — Increased unemployment is associated with increases in pediatric hospitalizations for four potentially economy-sensitive conditions, according to a report published in the October issue of Health Affairs<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Jeffrey D. Colvin, M.D., from Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, and colleagues examined associations between county-level unemployment and pediatric hospitalizations in 14 states every third year from 2002 to 2014.<\/p>\n
The researchers found that for four potentially economy-sensitive conditions, increased unemployment was associated with increased pediatric hospitalizations. For example, a 1 percent increase in unemployment was associated with increases of 5, 4, 2, and 2 percent in hospitalizations for substance abuse, diabetes mellitus, children with medical complexity, and poisoning and burns, after adjustment for state-specific effects of unemployment across all counties and years. For every 1 percent increase in unemployment, mean pediatric all-cause hospitalizations increased by 2 percent (54,177 excess hospitalizations in 2011 versus 2005). Despite the increased severity of these conditions during recessions, hospitalizations for mental health were not associated with unemployment.<\/p>\n
“Further research is needed into the programs and policies that may mitigate worsening health for these patient populations during economic downturn,” the authors write.<\/p>\n
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