COVID-19 and Immigrant Essential Workers: Bhutanese and Burmese Refugees in the United States

Zhang, Mengxi; Gurung, Ashok; Anglewicz, Philip; Yun, Katherine

doi:10.1177/0033354920971720

Cited by 33 publications

(49 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Refugee communities play an important role in the essential workforce in the United States, and preliminary data suggest this role has led to a high risk of COVID-19 infection among refugee essential workers. [9][10][11] Furthermore, many refugees live in multigenerational households with limited ability to quarantine infected household members. 10 In addition, chronic conditions associated with the adverse outcomes of COVID-19-such as diabetes and obesity-are prevalent among refugee adults in the United States.…”

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confidence: 99%

Acceptance of COVID-19 Vaccine Among Refugees in the United States

et al. 2021

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Objective Little is known about COVID-19 vaccination intentions among refugee communities in the United States. The objective of this study was to measure COVID-19 vaccination intentions among a sample of refugees in the United States and the reasons for their vaccine acceptance or hesitancy. Methods From December 2020 through January 2021, we emailed or text messaged anonymous online surveys to 12 bilingual leaders in the Afghan, Bhutanese, Somali, South Sudanese, and Burmese refugee communities in the United States. We asked community leaders to complete the survey and share the link with community members who met the inclusion criteria (arrived in the United States as refugees, were aged ≥18, and currently lived in the United States). We compared the characteristics of respondents who intended to receive the COVID-19 vaccine with those of respondents who did not intend to receive the vaccine or were unsure. We then conducted crude and adjusted logistic regression analysis to measure the association between employment as an essential worker and COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. Results Of 435 respondents, 306 (70.3%) indicated that they planned to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Being an essential worker (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 2.37; 95% CI, 1.44-3.90) and male sex (aOR = 1.87; 95% CI, 1.12-3.12) were significantly associated with higher odds of intending to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Among respondents who intended to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, wanting to protect themselves (68.6%), family members (65.0%), and other people (54.3%) were the main reasons. Conclusion Many refugees who responded to the survey, especially those who worked in essential industries, intended to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Community organizations, health care providers, and public health agencies should work together to ensure that vaccine registration and vaccination sites are accessible to refugees.

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Acceptance of COVID-19 Vaccine Among Refugees in the United States

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“…As shown in Table 2, these publications present a varied geographic emphasis, ranging from the Syrian refugee response in Turkey 12 to the challenges faced by refugees from Bhutan and Burma in the US. 13 The single most widely represented regional focus, with a total of 11 publications, is on high-income countries with a particular emphasis on Europe, the US and Canada.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is of particular urgency at a time when refugees face increased exposure to Covid-19 due in part to their overrepresentation in the essential workforce and in precarious, lowincome jobs that offer few safeguards to protect employees from the virus. 7,13 In the US, for example, undocumented immigrants and refugees in low-income employment often lack health insurance or access to primary care services and are excluded from government relief packages. 7 When it comes to mental health, refugees generally tend to suffer from higher rates of PTSD, anxiety and depression as compared to the general population.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Refugee Health During the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Review of Global Policy Responses

Lupieri¹

2021

RMHP

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Refugees and displaced persons have been severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Yet findings from this narrative review reveal that the health needs of refugees have been largely neglected within global healthcare responses. Such gaps include: (1) responding to the needs of refugees in camps and detention centers; (2) providing adequate public health information; (3) providing access to healthcare and mental health services; (4) and including refugees as decision-makers within health responses. More research is urgently needed to investigate why these gaps exists and to provide recommendations for improving the inclusiveness of healthcare policies during a pandemic.

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“…Essential workers were also substantially more likely to report working outside the home and less likely to report social distancing and wearing masks indoors, as compared to their nonessential counterparts. In their study of Bhutanese and Burmese refugees in the United States, Zhang et al (2021) noted that the three largest risk factors for contracting COVID-19 were being an essential worker, having an infected family member, and being female. Hibel et al (2021) also found that Latina mothers were particularly at risk due to their role in caring for children and family members in essential occupations.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Virus Without Papers: Understanding COVID-19 and the Impact on Immigrant Communities

Kiester¹,

Vasquez-Merino

2021

Journal on Migration and Human Security

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The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the inequalities facing vulnerable populations: those living in economically precarious situations and lacking adequate health care. In addition, frontline workers deemed essential to meet our basic needs have faced enormous personal risk to keep earning their paychecks and the economy running. Immigrant communities face an intersection of all three vulnerabilities (e.g., economic precarity, health care barriers, essential workforce), making them one of the most vulnerable populations in the United States. We conducted 26 interviews via Zoom with immigrant service providers in Pennsylvania and New York, including lawyers, case workers, religious leaders, advocates, doctors, and educators in order to gain a better understanding of the impact of COVID-19 on immigrant communities. These interviews affirmed that immigrants are concentrated in essential industries, which increases their exposure to the virus. In addition, they lack access to social safety nets when trying to access health care or facing job/income loss. Last, COVID-19 did not adequately slow the detention and deportation machine in the United States, which led to increased transmission of the virus among not only detainees but also others in the detention system, surrounding communities, and the countries to which people were deported, countries that often lacked an adequate infrastructure for dealing with the pandemic. Based on our interviews, we have a series of specific policy recommendations to diminish the vulnerability of immigrants and create social safety nets that will include them and protect them when the market fails to do so. Immigrants of all types have made indispensable contributions to the US economy during the pandemic and before it. First, Congress and states should pass legislation to provide COVID-19 relief payments to all essential workers, regardless of their status, as compensation for putting their lives on the line to keep the economy running. Second, as a public health imperative, federal and state governments should expand coverage of Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Programs (CHIP) to include immigrant essential workers and their children, regardless of their status. Third, DHS should not refer essential workers to removal proceedings, and immigration courts should terminate all removal proceedings for essential workers without criminal records. When it comes to issues of health care affordability and access, Congress must continue to revise the Affordable Healthcare Act to expand coverage for those who do not qualify for Medicaid but earn too little to afford insurance on their own. Finally, there must be a review and rigorous enforcement of workplace health and safety standards, particularly when it comes to farming, meatpacking, food production, and food service industries. Our final recommendations are specific to DHS and two of the primary agencies they oversee: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Border Patrol. First, there needs to be a review of ICE policies and practices, leading to a shift in policy that keeps mixed-status families intact and minor children out of detention centers and that streamlines and expands the asylum process. Second, both Congress and the administration must create additional paths to legal status where none now exist, including for recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and for children who have arrived since June 2007.

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COVID-19 and Immigrant Essential Workers: Bhutanese and Burmese Refugees in the United States

Cited by 33 publications

References 15 publications

Acceptance of COVID-19 Vaccine Among Refugees in the United States

Acceptance of COVID-19 Vaccine Among Refugees in the United States

Refugee Health During the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Review of Global Policy Responses

A Virus Without Papers: Understanding COVID-19 and the Impact on Immigrant Communities

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