Policy

Mental Health Fallout

September 18, 2017

Since President Trump announced he is rescinding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which benefits undocumented immigrants brought to the US before age 16, debate has raged about potential economic consequences. Yet DACA’s substantial public health benefits have been overlooked, write physicians Atheendar S. Venkataramani and Alexander C. Tsai.

They point to evidence that DACA recipients’ rates of psychological distress are far below those of noncitizens unable to meet DACA’s strict criteria.

If no legislative solution is found before DACA’s March end date, the authors write, health professionals will need to be prepared for the mental health fallout.

Source: New England Journal of Medicine (Perspective)

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