Health profile differences between recipients and non-recipients of the Brazilian Income Transfer Program in a low-income population

Abstract

We investigated the relationship between living in a household that receives the Brazilian Income Transfer Program (Bolsa Família, in Portuguese - BF), a Brazilian conditional cash transfer program, and aspects of health and whether these relationships are heterogeneous across the 27 Brazilian states. According to data from the 2013 Brazilian National Health Survey, 18% of households participated in BF. Among households with household per capita income below BRL 500, many aspects of health differed between people living in BF and non-BF houses. For example, BF households were less likely to have medical coverage but more likely to have visited the doctor in the last 12 months as well as being more likely to smoke and less likely to do exercise. They ate nearly one less serving of fruits and vegetables a week but were less likely to substitute junk food for a meal. They reported worse self-rated health but did not differ importantly on reporting illnesses. Moderate amounts of heterogeneity in the difference in health characteristics were found for some variables. For instance, medical coverage had an I2 value of 40.7% and the difference in coverage between BF and non-BF households ranged from -0.09 to -0.03. Some illnesses differed qualitatively across states such as high cholesterol, asthma and arthritis. This paper is the first to outline the health profile of people living in households receiving payments from a cash transfer program. It is also the first to find geographic heterogeneity in the relationship between a cash transfer program and health variables. These results suggest the possibility that the effect of cash transfer programs may differ based on the population on which it is implemented.

Bolsa Família e (in)segurança alimentar em município mineiro: Estudo com crianças até sete anos

“…Tal achado ratifica que os programas de transferência condicionada de renda, a exemplo do PBF, têm a capacidade de ampliar o acesso a alimentos pelas famílias beneficiárias, porém a ampliação do poder de compra não necessariamente é acompanhada pelo aumento da qualidade nutricional dos alimentos consumidos, visto que aspectos simbólicos, culturais, psicossociais, disponibilidade e preço podem interferir nesse processo. 20,21 Por outro lado, os resultados mostram que o consumo de AUP no dia anterior à entrevista foi menor entre as crianças em IAMG. Possivelmente esse resultado seja justificado pela dificuldade de acesso a alimentos, independentemente do seu grau de processamento e qualidade nutricional, e a situação de fome nos domicílios em insegurança alimentar, que dificulta a compra.…”

Health services, intersectoriality and social control: a comparative study on a conditional income transfer program

“…The service with different health professionals and home visits, which is greater for the families entitled to the BFP, can be explained by the commitment to fulfill health conditionalities required by the design of the BFP. In a study on differences in the profile of access to health services between families entitled or not to the BFP, using data from the 2013 National Health Survey, families entitled had a greater likelihood of receiving medical professional advice (24). However, activities within groups and access to professional nutritionists are less expressive, which can restrict integrality in health, since these are important tools for health promotion (25).…”

Doenças crônicas não transmissíveis e seus fatores de risco na população beneficiária do Programa Bolsa Família

“…Esses efeitos podem ser percebidos pelo acompanhamento do crescimento e do desenvolvimento de crianças, gestantes e nutrizes, assim como pela maior aproximação e facilidade acesso das famílias beneficiárias às unidades de saúde, com a Estratégia Saúde da Família (ESF) (8) . No entanto, existem lacunas no conhecimento sobre os impacto do PBF nas DCNT e seus FR (9) , principalmente pelo fato de essas doenças resultarem em mortes prematuras, incapacidades físicas, tratamentos, internações, além de reduzirem a capacidade produtiva dos indivíduos e a renda das famílias e comunidades (3) .…”