Are immigrants more vulnerable to the socioeconomic impact of COVID-19? A cross-sectional study in Amadora Municipality, Lisbon metropolitan area

Abstract

IntroductionImmigrants carry an extra burden of morbidities and mortalities since the beginning of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Pre-existing inequalities among immigrants may threaten their economic wellbeing during the pandemic. This study analyzed the socioeconomic impact of COVID-19 on immigrants and natives living in Amadora, Metropolitan Region of Lisbon and the extent to which preexisting inequalities had been exacerbated during the pandemic.Materials and methodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted in Amadora Municipality, Lisbon Region, through phone interviews and using a structured questionnaire. Data collected in July 2020, included information on a cohort of 420 households, of which 51% were immigrants. To evaluate the socioeconomic position and economic wellbeing changes occurring during the pandemic we estimate crude and adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% CI, using Portuguese natives as the reference group.ResultsOverall, 287 (70%) participants responded to the questionnaire, of which 47% are immigrants. Preexisting socioeconomic inequalities were exacerbated during the pandemic. Compared with natives, immigrants were more likely to experience job loss, temporary lay-off, and income loss during the COVID-19 pandemic. Immigrants were also more likely to face several kinds of financial hardship during the pandemic, such as difficulties in buying food, hygiene products, and paying bills.ConclusionTo the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to capture the direct socioeconomic impact of COVID-19 among immigrants and natives in Portugal. It highlights the bidirectional relation between inequalities deeply rooted among immigrants and COVID-19. Socioeconomic inequalities affect local patterns of COVID-19 burden, as confirmed in previous studies, but COVID-19 also has an impact on the economic wellbeing of Amadora immigrants during the pandemic. Urgent policies must be implemented to mitigate the economic burden of COVID-19 among immigrants, namely in Amadora, Lisbon Region.

Food Insecurity among International Migrants during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review

“…According to our findings, one of the major causes of this was the financial hardship that resulted from the containment measures put in place to hinder the spread of COVID-19 and the way in which these measures precipitated an economic recession [ 72 ]. Migrant populations have experienced higher job losses and decreased incomes than the majority populations in the wake of the pandemic, which eventually disrupted their access to adequate nutritious food [ 9 , 73 , 74 ]. This finding builds upon the existing evidence that shows that migrants experienced food insecurity before the pandemic to a higher degree than non-migrants as a consequence of several socioeconomic inequalities [ 14 ].…”

“…However, migrants constitute a heterogenic group that has been affected differently, depending on factors such as their country of origin and destination, the reason for migration, and their status of documentation, among others [ 7 , 8 ]. In addition, people in vulnerable situations experienced more financial hardship and other social consequences during the pandemic, which might be attributed to pre-existing socioeconomic inequalities [ 9 ]. Poorer socioeconomic conditions can in turn increase vulnerability to infection and disease, creating vicious cycles that are reinforced during a pandemic [ 10 ].…”

Exploring refugees’ health care access in times of COVID-19: a quantitative study in the Lisbon region, Portugal

“…Moreover, in the early stages of the pandemic, immigrants had increased difficulties in accessing healthcare services in comparison with natives. Immigrants were more likely to face hindrances in obtaining medical appointments, in complying with children’s vaccinations, and in the acquisition of pharmaceuticals ( 18 , 19 ).…”

Serological screening in a large-scale municipal survey in Cascais, Portugal, during the first waves of the COVID-19 pandemic: lessons for future pandemic preparedness efforts

“…SARS-CoV-2 (Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) virus was responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, declared on the March 11th, 2020, by the World Health Organization (1), causing more than 768 million confirmed infections and over 6•9 million deaths worldwide as of June, 2023. 1 The pandemic caused huge disruption on health systems, economy, education, and society (2). One of the public health strategies carried out early in the pandemic was the conduction of serological surveys to estimate SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in the general community or in target populations (3)(4)(5)(6).…”

“…The Municipality of Cascais, composed of four parishes 1 https://covid19.who.int/ ("freguesias"), with Cascais as the municipal seat, is in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (Portugal) and had 214,124 inhabitants in 2021. 2 The serological survey was carried out until February 2021 (13) and included two additional epidemic waves that started in October and December 2020, respectively, with higher incidence than the first wave. In February-March 2021, the estimated nationwide seroprevalence was estimated to be 15.5% (11).…”