Income transfer policies and the impacts on the immunization of children: the Bolsa Familia Program

This paper investigates the impact of the Bolsa Familia Program on the immunization of children from 0 to 6 years of age in Brazil and its regions. The Bolsa Familia program is a conditional cash transfer program. One of its conditionalities is the compliance of children with the immunization schedule ordered by the Ministry of Health. The evaluation was performed using the Propensity Score Matching technique. We used data from a survey conducted in 2005 evaluating the program - Pesquisa de Avaliacao de Impacto do Programa Bolsa Familia. The main findings suggest that the Bolsa Familia Program does not affect the immunization status of children.