Does Diversity Matter for Health? Experimental Evidence from Oakland Article Swipe

PDF

Related Concepts

diversity (politics) workforce workforce diversity white (mutation) gerontology black women black male medicine family medicine preventive care medical care service (business) health economics health care demography psychology nursing public health economics political science sociology business economic growth marketing gender studies law biology gene biochemistry

Marcella Alsan , Owen Garrick , Grant Graziani ·

YOU? · · 2019 · Open Access · · DOI: https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.20181446 · OA: W2848286189

We study the effect of physician workforce diversity on the demand for preventive care among African American men. In an experiment in Oakland, California, we randomize black men to black or non-black male medical doctors. We use a two-stage design, measuring decisions before (pre-consultation) and after (post-consultation) meeting their assigned doctor. Subjects select a similar number of preventives in the pre-consultation stage, but are much more likely to select every preventive service, particularly invasive services, once meeting with a racially concordant doctor. Our findings suggest black doctors could reduce the black-white male gap in cardiovascular mortality by 19 percent. (JEL I12, I14, C93)