Pediatricians Report Immigrant Families Avoiding Care for Their Children

FRIDAY, Sept. 18, 2026 (HealthDay News) — More than one-third of pediatricians believe immigrant families in their practices are avoiding seeking medical care for their children, according to a research brief published online Sept. 15 in Pediatrics.

Lynn M. Olson, Ph.D., from the American Academy of Pediatrics in Itasca, Illinois, and colleagues used national weighted data from three cohorts of pediatricians participating in the Pediatrician Life and Career Experience Study to evaluate pediatricians” perceptions about the experiences of immigrant families.

Based on 1,654 responses, the researchers found pediatricians estimated that roughly one-quarter of their patients (26.2 percent) are in families that immigrated to the United States, and 39.6 percent of pediatricians reported such families avoided seeking medical care for their child out of concern for the patient or family”s immigration status (37.9 percent said they were unsure). Similarly, 31.3 percent of respondents said immigrant families avoided applying for government programs (52.9 percent unsure) and 21.3 percent reported families avoided sending their child to school (53.4 percent unsure). Pediatricians reporting larger proportions (≥25 percent) of immigrant patients in their practice and those practicing in urban, inner-city areas were more likely to report they experienced families avoiding care and services across all three categories of avoidance. Responses were relatively similar across Census Bureau regions. Subspecialists were more likely than generalists to report they had families that avoided seeking medical care and sending their child to school. 

“This new research puts data behind the concerns pediatricians have been raising for months about the immigrant families in their care,” AAP Chief Medical Officer Lee Beers, M.D., said in a statement. “Many families are canceling or missing their doctor appointments, avoiding vital public health benefits they are eligible for, or keeping their children home from school out of fear. This chilling effect has serious short- and long-term consequences for child health.”

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