Abstract
Approximately 1.4 million single mothers have substantial health problems. Even if they were to work full time, they would be unlikely to earn enough to adequately provide for themselves and their children. Many of these women are not likely to find employment that offers health insurance coverage for themselves or their children. Employment is thus not an option that would provide sufficient resources — in terms of income or insurance — for them to live at or above the poverty line. Those single mothers who have a disabled child are at additional disadvantage. These children may require increased time from an adult and are likely to have considerable medical care needs and expenditures. For these families, employment of the mother may not provide adequate resources in terms of either time available to meet the disabled child’s special needs, income, or adequate health insurance.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Blank, R. (1989) ‘The Effect of Medical Need and Medicaid on AFDC Participation,’ Journal of Human Resources, 24 (Winter), 54–87.
1990 Green Book, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office).
Haveman, R., and B. Wolfe (1990a) ‘The Economic Well-Being of the Disabled, 1962–1984,’ Journal of Human Resources, 25(1), 32–54.
Haveman, R., and B. Wolfe (1990b) ‘Trends in the Prevalence of Disability, 1962–1984,’ The Milbank Quarterly, 68(1), 53–80.
Haveman, R., M. Stone, and B. Wolfe. (1989) ‘Market Work, Wages and Men’s Health.’ Working Paper No. 3020, National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, Mass.
Institute for American Values (1989) ‘How the Child Care Market Works: An Economic Analysis.’ Family Policy Brief, New York.
Lee, L. F. (1982) ‘Health and Wage: A Simultaneous Equation Model with Multiple Discrete Indicators,’ International Economic Review, 23, 199–221.
Luft, H. (1975) ‘The Impact of Poor Health on Earnings,’ Review of Economics and Statistics, 57, 43–57.
Maddala, G. S. (1983) Limited Dependent and Qualitative Variables in Econometrics (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).
Maddox, G. L., and E. B. Douglass (1973) ‘Self-Assessment of Health: A Longitudinal Study of Elderly Subjects,’ Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 14 (March), 87–93.
Moffitt, R. (1987) ‘Work and the U.S. Welfare System: A Critical Review.’ Final Report to the Department of Health and Human Services.
Moffitt, R., and B. Wolfe (1990) ‘The Effects of Medicaid on Welfare Dependency and Work.’ Special Report no. 49, Institute for Research on Poverty, University of Wisconsin-Madison.
National Center for Health Statistics (1990) Health of Black and White Americans, 1985–87 (Hyattsville, Maryland: Public Health Service) Series 10, no. 171.
National Center for Health Statistics (1991) Health, United States, 1990 (Hyattsville, Maryland: Public Health Service).
Ries, P. (1990) Americans Assess Their Health: United States 1987 (National Center for Health Statistics, Hyattsville, Maryland).
Winkler, A. (1991) ‘The Incentive Effects of Medicaid on Women’s Labor Supply,’ Journal of Human Resources, 26(2), 308–37.
U.S. Bureau of the Census (1987) Who’s Minding the Kids? Child Care Arrangements: Winter 1984–85. Current Population Reports, Series P-70, No. 9 (Washington, D.C., U.S. Government Printing Office).
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 1993 Dimitri B. Papadimitriou and Edward N. Wolff
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Wolfe, B.L., Hill, S. (1993). The Health, Earnings Capacity, and Poverty of Single-mother Families. In: Papadimitriou, D.B., Wolff, E.N. (eds) Poverty and Prosperity in the USA in the Late Twentieth Century. Jerome Levy Economics Institute. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-22953-6_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-22953-6_4
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-22955-0
Online ISBN: 978-1-349-22953-6
eBook Packages: Palgrave Economics & Finance CollectionEconomics and Finance (R0)