The study is particularly noteworthy given that the share of Latino/Hispanic residents will more than double to 29 percent from 14 percent in 2005 as reported in a recent New York Times article. In fact, 1 in 7 residents may be foreign-born by the year 2020, as estimated by a Pew Research Center report released Feb. 11.
The CPAC/HIA study estimated the willingness to pay for cross-border health insurance among Mexican immigrants living in the U.S. and found that:
• Among respondents, 62 percent of Mexican immigrants surveyed said they would support a cross-border insurance plan.
• When queried about specific dollar amounts, 57 percent said they'd pay $75-$125 per month for cross-border health coverage.
• Approximately 50,000 Mexican immigrants are enrolled in California's cross-border health coverage plan, but more than 11 million Mexican immigrants live or work in the U.S.
• In 2005, Mexican immigrants in the U.S. sent $20 billion to their relatives back home, primarily to help cover family health care expenses.
• Individuals who sent money for family health care expenses strongly supported binational insurance.
Currently, California is the only state in the country that has limited cross-border insurance with Mexico. Three plans offer services between Los Angeles and San Diego and border cities of Baja California, Mexico. There is a great potential to expand this cross-border provision of health services to other states and nationally in Mexico.
"The Mexican-born population in the U.S. has the lowest share of health insurance coverage than any other foreign-born group," said CPAC Director Gil Ojeda. "Cross-border health coverage could provide insurance to Mexican immigrants in the U.S. and their families in Mexico. Also, U.S. retirees and families living or visiting Mexico could benefit from cross-border coverage."
The CPAC/HIA study, Willingness to Pay for Cross-Border Health Insurance between the United States and Mexico, is published in the current issue of Health Affairs, the nation's premier health policy magazine.
The CPAC/HIA researcher for the study was Arturo Vargas Bustamante, a Ph.D. candidate at UC Berkeley's Goldman School of Public Policy. "Binational health insurance is an innovative policy option that can be considered to expand insurance coverage at low cost for both documented and undocumented workers in the U.S.," said Bustamante.
The California Program on Access to Care and Health Initiative of the Americas are applied policy research programs administered through UC Berkeley's School of Public Health in cooperation with the University of California Office of the President. CPAC works to promote health care access to vulnerable populations in California and HIA works to promote health resources for Latino immigrants in California.
For more information on the California Program on Access to Care: www.ucop.edu/cpac
For more information on the Health Initiative of the Americas: www.ucop.edu/hia