Our comprehensive review and meta- analysis of these experiments find suggestive evidence of health benefits associated with investments in early life , income support , and health insurance interventions .
Housing and neighborhood trials had no effect on the outcomes included in the meta-analyses .
A positive effect of the trial on its primary socioeconomic outcome was associated with higher odds of reporting health improvements .
Early life , income , and health insurance interventions have the potential to improve health .
Policy Points Social policies might not only improve economic well-being , but also health .
Health policy experts have therefore advocated for investments in social policies both to improve population health and potentially reduce health system costs .
Since the 1960s , a large number of social policies have been experimentally evaluated in the United States .
Some of these experiments include health outcomes , providing a unique opportunity to inform evidence -based policymaking .
CONTEXT Insurers and health care providers are investing heavily in nonmedical social interventions in an effort to improve health and potentially reduce health care costs .
Differential mental health effects of neighborhood relocation among youth in vulnerable families: results from a randomized trial.
CONTEXT Extensive observational evidence indicates that youth in high-poverty neighborhoods exhibit poor mental health , although not all children may be affected similarly . OBJECTIVE To use experimental evidence to assess whether gender and family health problems modify the mental health effects of moving from high- to low-poverty neighborhoods . DESIGN R and omized controlled trial . SETTING Volunteer low-income families in public housing in 5 US cities between 1994 - 1997 . PARTICIPANTS We analyze 4- to 7-year outcomes in youth aged 12 to 19 years ( n = 2829 , 89 % effective response rate ) in the Moving to Opportunity Study . INTERVENTION Families were r and omized to remain in public housing ( control group ) or to receive government-funded rental subsidies to move into private apartments ( experimental group ) . Intention-to-treat analyses included intervention interactions by gender and health vulnerability ( defined as prer and omization health/developmental limitations or disabilities in family members ) . MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Past-year psychological distress ( Kessler 6 scale [ K6 ] ) and the Behavioral Problems Index ( BPI ) . Supplemental analyses used past-year major depressive disorder ( MDD ) . RESULTS Male gender ( P = .02 ) and family health vulnerability ( P = .002 ) significantly adversely modified the intervention effect on K6 scores ; male gender ( P = .01 ) , but not health vulnerability ( P = .17 ) , significantly adversely modified the intervention effect on the BPI .  Girls without baseline health vulnerabilities were the only subgroup to benefit on any outcome ( K6 : β = -0.21 ; 95 % CI , -0.34 to -0.07 ; P = .003 ; MDD : odds ratio = 0.42 ; 95 % CI , 0.20 to 0.85 ; P = .02 ) . For boys with health vulnerabilities , intervention was associated with worse K6 ( β = 0.26 ; 95 % CI , 0.09 to 0.44 ; P = .003 ) and BPI ( β = 0.24 ; 95 % CI , 0.09 to 0.40 ; P = .002 ) values . Neither girls with health vulnerability nor boys without health vulnerability experienced intervention benefits . Adherence-adjusted instrumental variable analysis found intervention effects twice as large . Patterns were similar for MDD , but estimates were imprecise owing to low prevalence . CONCLUSIONS Although some girls benefited , boys and adolescents from families with baseline health problems did not experience mental health benefits from housing mobility policies and may need additional program supports
Our comprehensive review and meta- analysis of these experiments find suggestive evidence of health benefits associated with investments in early life , income support , and health insurance interventions .
Housing and neighborhood trials had no effect on the outcomes included in the meta-analyses .
A positive effect of the trial on its primary socioeconomic outcome was associated with higher odds of reporting health improvements .
Early life , income , and health insurance interventions have the potential to improve health .
Policy Points Social policies might not only improve economic well-being , but also health .
Health policy experts have therefore advocated for investments in social policies both to improve population health and potentially reduce health system costs .
Since the 1960s , a large number of social policies have been experimentally evaluated in the United States .
Some of these experiments include health outcomes , providing a unique opportunity to inform evidence -based policymaking .
CONTEXT Insurers and health care providers are investing heavily in nonmedical social interventions in an effort to improve health and potentially reduce health care costs .