Deportation of Family Members of US-Citizen Latinos and Misuse of Prescription Drugs: United States, 2019

Abstract

Objectives. To investigate how personally knowing a deported migrant relates to past-year prescription drug misuse among US-citizen Latinos. Methods. Between April and May 2019, a national sample (n = 3446) was recruited to complete an online survey. Multivariate and multinomial logistic regression models examined the role of (1) personally knowing a deported migrant and (2) the relationship to the deportee (e.g., family, friend) on (1) any past-year prescription drug misuse and (2) the frequency of prescription drug misuse. I limited analyses to US citizens only (n = 3282). Results. Overall, 19% of all participants reported any past-year prescription drug misuse. Latinos who had a family member who was deported reported significantly higher odds of past-year prescription drug misuse and were exceedingly at higher risk for misusing prescription drugs 3 or more days in the past year as compared with Whites and Latinos who did not personally know a deported migrant. Conclusions. Public health prevention strategies and deportation policies need to consider and address how the deportation of an individual will affect the health of that individual’s US-citizen family members.