The health of immigrants in Italy: the viewpoint of the Italian National Institute for Health, Migration and Poverty (INMP)

The foreign population accounts for 8.6 percent (about 5 million) of the total number of residents, so it is necessary to monitor their health status. Foreigners have standardized mortality rates of about half that of Italians. In terms of hospitalization, rates and causes of hospitalization differ substantially due to the younger average age of foreigners. In particular, a much higher burden of hospitalizations in obstetrical care is observed among foreign women. Maternal and child health is a major concern for foreigners, especially for pregnancy care, which is also reflected in worse health outcomes for newborns. Difficulties in accessing and using basic and specialized territorial services are confirmed by the higher proportion of ordinary emergency hospitalizations among foreigners, the higher risk of being hospitalized for causes that could be treated in an outpatient setting, and the higher frequency of access to emergency rooms with a white/green triage code. The pandemic exacerbated health inequalities because it affected the most disadvantaged social strata of the population, including immigrants, more severely in terms of infection and outcomes. Immigrants could become the least healthy part of the population, similar to what is observed in countries with a longer tradition of migration, even in a country like Italy, where access to care is universally guaranteed.