December 1, 2020

Unemployment Insurance, Health-Related Social Needs, Health Care Access, and Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Category: Article Summary

Topic: Public Health Policy and Practice

Keywords (Tags): public health

People living in a household that received unemployment benefits were less likely to have unmet health-related social needs, less likely to have delayed health care, and less likely to be experiencing depressive and anxiety symptoms relative to comparable people not receiving unemployment benefits. These findings were drawn from a cross-sectional study of 68,911 individuals representing 34 million people in the US. While recognizing the limitations of these data, the authors conclude that unemployment insurance benefits may help mitigate economic disruption caused by the pandemic.

Berkowitz and Basu. (Nov 30, 2020). Unemployment Insurance, Health-Related Social Needs, Health Care Access, and Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic. JAMA Internal Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2020.7048