Dienstag, 18. April 2023

Ethnic and social inequalities in access to health care

Evidence from a nation-wide field experiment in Germany

WZB Talk by Jianghong Li and Jan Paul Heisig - Online Event

Existing research in Germany based on survey reports suggest that patients with low income and non-German names are discriminated against both in access to health care and in treatment by specialists. However, because this research is mostly based on interviews with affected individuals, the findings are prone to bias. Field experiments can provide robust evidence of discrimination due to ethnic and socioeconomic background. Using a large-scale and nationwide field experimental design, we investigated whether patients with foreign-sounding names or with public health insurance are discriminated against in access to health care and whether the extent of discrimination differs between different ethnic groups.

Our results show that physicians and psychotherapists prefer patients with German-sounding names, or with a doctorate, and/or with private health insurance.

Jianghong Li is a Research Fellow of the President's Research Group.
Jan Paul Heisig is Head of the Research Group Health and Social Inequality.

Please note that this event takes place in English only with no translation.

The event is part of the WZB Talks series.

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