About the Poverty Tracke r Launched in 2012, the Poverty Tracker surveys a representative sample of New Yorkers sever- al times throughout the year, providing critical information on the dynamics of poverty and other forms of disadvantage in the city. Unlike other surveys, the Poverty Tracker explores how New York- ers experience poverty and material hardship over time, rather than in a single day, month, or year. In addition, the Poverty Tracker focuses on more than income poverty; annually, the study collects data on other core measures of disadvantage, such as material hardships and health problems. We use these alternative measures to understand how certain types of disadvantage, or multiple, overlapping sources of disadvantage, make it harder for New Yorkers to get by. The Poverty Tracker also collects data on other aspects related to New Yorkers’ well-being, from asset and debt accu- mulation, to social service program utilization, to spending and consumption patterns, in order to form a better understanding of how New Yorkers are faring within the city. Our approach In this report, we follow changes in the healthcare experiences of New Yorkers with high healthcare need (hereafter, “high-need”). We define high need as having multiple chronic health conditions, a work-limiting health condition, or serious psychological distress (see text box). We distinguish between high-need New Yorkers with and without economic disadvantage over two time periods: 2021 and 2022. 3 Economic disad- vantage is defined as being in poverty (as defined by the Supplemental Poverty Measure, or SPM) or expe- riencing material hardship (reporting difficulty meeting basic needs). 4 Our sample contains 705 high-need New Yorkers, 371 of whom are economically disadvantaged. 5 High healthcare need (high need) Multiple chronic health conditions Two or more of the following self-reported chronic health conditions: asthma, diabetes, hypertension, cancer, heart disease
Work-limiting health condition
A health problem or disability that prevents one from working or limits the kind or amount of work one can do A value of 13 or greater on the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6), which indicates serious psychological distress.
Serious psychological distress
3 This analysis utilizes the Poverty Tracker’s longitudinal structure. The first period covers surveys conducted between October 2020 and June 2021. The second period covers surveys conducted between April 2022 and November 2022. 4 For this report, we define poverty using the Supplemental Poverty Measure, prior to the subtraction of medical out-of-pocket expenses from resourc- es. For a more detailed definition of poverty and material hardship, see “The state of poverty and disadvantage in New York City: volume 7,” Poverty Tracker Research Group. We exclude medical out-of-pocket expenses so as to not conflate economic need with high healthcare needs. 5 For this analysis, we statistically control for basic demographic indicators including race, gender, age, and education level.
PATTERNS OF DELAYED HEALTHCARE AMONG NEW YORKERS WITH HIGH HEALTHCARE NEED 4
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