The Role of Place of Birth and Residence in Puerto Rican Health Disparities: Evidence From Disability Prevalence Among Archipelago- Vs. Mainland-Born Puerto Ricans

Objectives: This paper provides new estimates of disability prevalence for the archipelago and mainland-residing Puerto Rican populations ages 40 and above and compares disability by place of birth and place of residence to investigate drivers of middle and older age health. Methods: Large nationally representative samples from 2013 to 2017 American Community Survey and Puerto Rico Community Survey data are used to estimate age-specific disability prevalence for archipelago-born/archipelago-residing, archipelago-born/mainland-residing, mainland-born/mainland-residing Puerto Ricans. Results: Mainland-born/mainland-residing Puerto Ricans have the lowest age-adjusted disability rates and archipelago-born/archipelago-residing Puerto Ricans have the highest rates. Differences in education explain part of this disparity. Discussion: Similarities in disability prevalence are strongest based on where one was born as opposed to current residence, pointing to early life as a critical period in the disablement process for later-life health. Early life socio-economic disadvantage on the archipelago may have an enduring impact on later-life disability prevalence for archipelago-born Puerto Ricans.