Yale School of Medicine, 330 Cedar Street, New Haven, CT, 06520-8056, USA.
SEICHE Center for Health and Justice, 300 George Street G05, New Haven, CT, 06520, USA.
J Urban Health. 2023 Feb;100(1):181-189. doi: 10.1007/s11524-022-00707-6. Epub 2023 Jan 17.
Financial debt and incarceration are both independently associated with poor health, but there is limited research on the association between debt and health for those leaving incarceration. This exploratory study surveyed 75 people with a chronic health condition and recent incarceration to examine debt burden, financial well-being, and possible associations with self-reported health. Eighty-four percent of participants owed at least one debt, with non-legal debt being more common than legal debt. High financial stress was associated with poor self-reported health and the number of debts owed. Owing specific forms of debt was associated with poor health or high financial stress. Non-legal financial debt is common after incarceration, and related stress is associated with poor self-reported health. Future research is needed in larger populations in different geographical areas to further investigate the relationship and the impact debt may have on post-release poor health outcomes. Policy initiatives to address debt in the post-release population may improve health.
财务债务和监禁都与健康状况不佳有关，但对于那些刚出狱的人来说，关于债务和健康之间的关系的研究有限。本探索性研究调查了 75 名患有慢性健康状况和最近被监禁的人，以检查债务负担、财务状况以及与自我报告健康状况的可能关联。84%的参与者至少欠有一笔债务，非法律债务比法律债务更为常见。高财务压力与较差的自我报告健康状况和负债数量有关。欠特定类型的债务与健康状况不佳或财务压力高有关。非法律金融债务在监禁后很常见，相关压力与较差的自我报告健康状况有关。未来需要在不同地理区域的更大人群中进行研究，以进一步调查这种关系以及债务可能对出狱后健康结果的影响。解决出狱人群中债务问题的政策举措可能会改善健康状况。
