Citation URL: http://www.urban.org/MatthewPantell

The ability of employed parents to meet the health needs of their children may depend on their access to sick leave, especially for low-income workers. By examining access to paid sick leave and paid vacation using the 2003-2004 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, the authors find that low-income families are less likely to have access to paid leave, especially if the family lacks a full-time/full-year worker. Among children whose parents have access to paid sick leave, parents are more likely to take time away from work to care for themselves or others.

Lack of health insurance can affect the health and productivity of workers as well as the health of workers’ families, especially for low-income families, who are more likely to have members in poor health. We show that about half of children in low-income families do not have access to employer-sponsored insurance (ESI). Among the families without access to ESI, public insurance fills some gaps among children, but parents remain uninsured at high rates. For these families, children are twice as likely—and parents are nearly three times as likely—to be uninsured compared to families with an ESI offer.

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