Employer Verification Mandates and Infant Health

Kate W. Strully (), Robert Bozick, Ying Huang and Lane F. Burgette
Additional contact information
Kate W. Strully: University at Albany, SUNY
Robert Bozick: RAND Corporation
Ying Huang: University of Texas at San Antonio
Lane F. Burgette: RAND Corporation

Population Research and Policy Review, 2020, vol. 39, issue 6, No 7, 1143-1184

Abstract: Abstract In recent decades, several states have enacted their own immigration enforcement policies. This reflects substantial variation in the social environments faced by immigrants and native-born citizens, and has raised concerns about unintended consequences. E-Verify mandates, which require employers to use an electronic system to ascertain legal status as a pre-requisite for employment, are a common example of this trend. Drawing on birth certificate data from 2007 to 2014, during which 21 states enacted E-Verify mandates, we find that these mandates are associated with a decline in birthweight and gestational age for infants born to immigrant mothers with demographic profiles matching the undocumented population in their state as well as for infants of native-born mothers. In observing negative trends for both immigrants and natives, our findings do not support the hypothesis that E-Verify has a distinct impact on immigrant health; however, the broader economic, political, and demographic contexts that coincide with these policies, which likely impact the broader community of both immigrants and natives, may pose risks to infant health.

Keywords: Infant health; Immigration enforcement; United States (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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DOI: 10.1007/s11113-019-09545-y

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