Disparities in Health Insurance Coverage between Natives and Immigrants at Older Ages

Adriana M. Reyes, Pennsylvania State University
Melissa Hardy, Pennsylvania State University

At older ages, the shift from private to public health insurance is well established as an aspect of the retirement process; yet many older immigrants are left uninsured. Although Medicare provides health insurance coverage for those aged 65 and older, entitlement is based on an employment history older immigrants are unlikely to acquire. Federal eligibility for Medicaid explicitly excluded new immigrants in 1996. We examine health insurance and stability of coverage for older immigrants relative to the native-born and find that older immigrants’ coverage is more limited and episodic. Although all older immigrants experience this disadvantage, those from Latin America are most often uncovered, most likely to lose coverage, and least likely to gain it. While more generous state policies can ameliorate these circumstances, patterns of residential mobility seem to be governed by other factors such that relocation is more likely to lead to a loss rather than a gain.