University Honors

Immigrants in the United States experience significant barriers when accessing prenatal healthcare, regardless of documentation status. This review investigates the effectiveness of prenatal healthcare services for immigrant women in the United States from 2015 to 2025, focusing on identifying systemic gaps in state and federal-level policies that further healthcare inequities. I conducted a critical analysis of existing peer-reviewed studies and scholarly articles in three databases: PubMed, Web of Sciences, and ProQuest. The analysis revealed consistent concerns with health insurance policies for immigrants and highlighted ongoing challenges in prenatal healthcare outcomes among immigrant women. Commonly identified barriers to prenatal health care included cost of services, language and difficulties understanding medical terminology, and fears related to immigration enforcement. These findings align with broader themes on immigrant health disparities, such as the immigrant healthy paradox, which suggests that some foreign-born immigrant groups experience better health outcomes compared to U.S.-born individuals, and acculturation, which describes the process in which immigrants adapt to the dominant cultural norms within their new community. This research explores disparities in prenatal care and provides direction for future recommendations to policymakers and healthcare providers. The study will emphasize the need for more inclusive and equitable healthcare policies that ensure all women, regardless of immigration status, access essential prenatal services.