Food insufficiency and children with special healthcare needs

The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of food insufficiency, a more severe form of food insecurity, across levels of special healthcare needs among a nationally representative sample of children in the United States. The study also investigates whether medical home access serves as a possible protective mechanism against food hardship.

The study involves analysis of nationally representative cross-sectional data.

The data used are the 2016 National Survey of Children's Health, a cross-sectional nationally representative sample of the US children (N = 48,709). Descriptive analyses and logistic regression analysis are used to estimate food insufficiency and its correlates by complexity of children's special healthcare needs.

Analysis showed that children with more complex special healthcare needs experienced roughly twice the rate of food insufficiency compared with children with no special healthcare needs or children with less complex healthcare needs. Multivariate analysis indicated that children with more complex healthcare needs face an increased risk of food insufficiency net of demographic and economic characteristics. Interaction models revealed that medical home access protects children with medical complexity from food insufficiency.

These findings document significantly elevated risk of food insufficiency among families with a child facing more complex special healthcare needs. Interventions in healthcare settings could include referrals to resources already in place to combat hunger such as food bank agencies and other resources that might help at-risk families obtain assistance through programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Women, Infants, and Children.