American journal of public health最新文献

Objectives. To compare changes in the number of facility-based abortions among Texas residents in different age groups following the state's 2021 law prohibiting abortion after detection of embryonic cardiac activity. Methods. We obtained data from Texas and 6 surrounding states on Texas residents' age at abortion from state vital statistics and data provided directly by out-of-state abortion facilities. Using negative binomial regression, we estimated the percentage change in abortions before (September 2020-May 2021) and after (September 2021-May 2022) the law went into effect. Results. After the law's implementation, total (in-state and out-of-state) facility-based abortions decreased by 26.1% (95% confidence interval [CI] = -32.7%, -18.8%) among Texans younger than 18 years, by 19.6% (95% CI = -21.4%, -17.7%) among young adult Texans aged 18 to 24 years, and by 17.0% (95% CI = -19.1%, -14.8%) among Texans aged 25 to 29 years. Conclusions. Texas's law disproportionately affected access to facility-based abortion care among Texans aged 24 years and younger. Public Health Implications. State laws prohibiting abortions in early pregnancy disproportionately affect young people's reproductive autonomy, likely by compounding long-standing financial and logistical barriers to facility-based care. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print November 13, 2025:e1-e4. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2025.308289).

In this essay, we argue that policies that intentionally or unintentionally restrict reproductive autonomy constitute an act of violence. First, we discuss our guiding framework, highlighting the intersections between reproductive autonomy, reproductive justice, and violence. Second, we describe the importance of framing the restriction of reproductive autonomy as violence, emphasizing potential implications. Finally, we provide 3 illustrative examples of how governmental power-through the passage of laws-can both support and constrain reproductive autonomy across the life course: sex education, abortion restrictions, and parental leave policies. For each, we explain how the consequent harms overlap with those resulting from more traditional overt forms of violence. By framing the loss of reproductive autonomy as a form of violence, we underscore its profound and far-reaching harms, demanding urgent recognition and response as a critical public health and human rights issue. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print November 13, 2025:e1-e8. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2025.308276).

Objectives. To evaluate the impact of the temporary expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) for childless adults in 2021 on the mental health of home renters and homeowners. Methods. We used US Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data from 2021 through 2023. Mental health outcomes included the number of mentally unhealthy days in the past 30 days and an indicator for frequent mental distress (14 or more unhealthy days). We used a difference-in-differences design comparing outcome changes before and after the EITC expansion between young adults 18 to 24 years of age (treatment group) and adults 25 to 29 years of age (control group), separately for renters and homeowners. Results. The EITC expansion was associated with statistically significant improvements in mental health among young renters but not homeowners. Specifically, after the expansion in 2022, renters 18 to 24 years of age experienced a mean of 2.21 fewer mentally unhealthy days and exhibited a 9.8 percentage point decrease in the probability of frequent mental distress relative to older renters. Conclusions. Our findings suggest that antipoverty programs such as the EITC are associated with improvements in mental health among young adults who rent. (Am J Public Health. 2025;115(11):1858-1867. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2025.308219).

Objectives. To explore the association between the March 2020 Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) Medicaid disenrollment freeze during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) and children's insurance coverage by family income, race/ethnicity, and language. Methods. We used 2015 to 2021 US Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data, comparing monthly coverage for publicly insured children before (2015-2019) and during (2020-2021) the PHE. Outcomes included continuous public coverage, private coverage, no coverage, total months of public coverage, and total number of uninsured months. We estimated weighted multivariable linear regression models with a PHE period indicator. Results. The PHE was associated with an increase in continuous public coverage among children of 4.2% percentage points, reduced transitions to private coverage (-2.3 percentage points) and no insurance (-1.9 percentage points), and increases in months of public coverage. The largest continuous public coverage improvements were among children from families with incomes between 200% and 399% of the federal poverty level (FPL), non-Hispanic White children, and Hispanic children. Conclusions. The FFCRA improved children's public coverage continuity, particularly among children from families with incomes between 200% and 399% of the FPL, non-Hispanic White children, and Hispanic children, who may face coverage loss with disenrollment resuming. (Am J Public Health. 2025;115(11):1848-1857. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2024.307900).