Although it's generally understood that the U.S. health care delivery system has "historically engaged in the systematic segregation and discrimination of patients, the day-to-day scope of this bias remains unknown."
A national discussion about discrimination has dominated the headlines in 2020, and a new study documents its prevalence in the health-care system. More than two in 10 Americans report experiencing some type of discrimination, according to an analysis by JAMA Network Open.
"Discrimination is not uncommon in health care," study co-author Paige Nong told UPI. "We want our findings to show people who have experienced this kind of discrimination, which is often isolating and difficult to process, that that they are not alone."
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The survey of more than 2,100 adults revealed several types of discrimination:
- Racial or ethnic, 17%
- Educational or income level, 13%
- Weight, 11%
- Sex, 11%
- Age, 10%
More than 70% of those reporting discrimination said they have faced it more than once. The likelihood of experiencing discrimination was higher for women and lower for people those who are older, earn at least $50,000 in household income or report being in good or excellent health.
Although it's generally understood that the U.S. health care delivery system has "historically engaged in the systematic segregation and discrimination of patients, the day-to-day scope of this bias remains unknown," the American Academy of Family Physicians said on its website:
"The AAFP also recognizes the impact of racism within the U.S. health-care delivery system, which has historically engaged in the systematic segregation and discrimination of patients based on race and ethnicity, the effects of which persist to this day. Hospitals and clinics, which were once designated for racial and ethnic minorities, continue to experience significant financial constraints and are often under-resourced and improperly staffed. These issues result in inequities in access to and quality of health care and are major contributors to racial and ethnic health disparities. While segregation and discrimination based on race and ethnicity is no longer legal today, some organizations continue to discriminate based on insurance status, which also disproportionately impacts non-white populations."
This was the first study that has examined the prevalence, frequency and types of discrimination in the health-care system using a nationally representative sample without limiting respondents' reporting timeframe, according to JAMA Network Online.
"The level of discrimination reported in our study was slightly higher than we anticipated," Nong said. "Our study seeks to bring awareness of the prevalence of discrimination to policymakers and health-care systems so they can work hard to prevent discrimination in health-care settings."
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Alan Goforth
Alan Goforth is a freelance writer in suburban Kansas City. In addition to freelancing for several publications, he has written a dozen books about sports and other topics.
