Special Populations-Undocumented Immigrant Communities
For undocumented
immigrant communities, fears of deportation practices at vaccination sites are
of legitimate concern and draw individuals away from vaccination opportunities
[
1] even though the Department of Homeland Security
deems vaccination and testing sites as “protected areas” [
2].
For those within this community that do become infected and ill with the
Coronavirus, access to healthcare is limited due to financial, health
insurance, and public benefit restrictions [
3]. Further,
undocumented immigrants are not eligible for Federal public benefits, including
welfare, health, unemployment, housing, and food assistance [
4]. Ultimately, regardless of income, insurance coverage,
or benefit eligibility, undocumented peoples face various barriers to
vaccination including disparities in socioeconomic status, large household
sizes, isolated living conditions, as well as limited English proficiency and
health literacy [
5].
Source: Wisconsin Foreign-Born Population as a Share of Total Population by County
Long, D., Malia, J., & Ewald, M. (2017, November 20). Wisconsin’s foreign-born population.https://apl.wisc.edu/data-briefs/foreign-born-wi-17
Sources:
- Varney, S. (2021, February 16). Anti-immigrant vitriol complicates vaccine rollout in southern states. Kaiser Health News, Route Fifty. https://www.route-fifty.com/health-human-services/2021/02/anti-immigrant-vitriol-complicates-vaccine-rollout-southern-states/172094/
- US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (2021, October 18). FAQs: protected areas and courthouse arrests. US Department of Homeland Security. https://www.ice.gov/about-ice/ero/protected-areas
- Artiga, S., & Diaz, M. (2019, July 15). Health coverage and care of undocumented immigrants. Kaiser Family Foundation. https://www.kff.org/racial-equity-and-health-policy/issue-brief/health-coverage-and-care-of-undocumented-immigrants/
- Aliens who are not qualified aliens ineligible for Federal public benefits. 8 U.S.C. § 1611 (1998). https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=(title:8%20section:1611%20edition:prelim)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, December 4). COVID-19 case investigation and contact tracing among refugee, immigrant, and migrant (rim) populations: important considerations for health departments. US Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/php/rim-considerations.html
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