Effects of poverty and lack of insurance on perceptions of racial and ethnic bias in health care.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate whether poverty and lack of insurance are associated with perceived racial and ethnic bias in health care.


METHODS
2001 Survey on Disparities in Quality of Health Care, a nationally representative telephone survey. We use data on black, Hispanic, and white adults who have a regular physician (N=4,556).


METHODS
We estimate multivariate logistic regression models to examine the effects of poverty and lack of health insurance on perceived racial and ethnic bias in health care for all respondents and by racial, ethnic, and language groups.


RESULTS
Controlling for sociodemographic and other factors, uninsured blacks and Hispanics interviewed in English are more likely to report racial and ethnic bias in health care compared with their privately insured counterparts. Poor whites are more likely to report racial and ethnic bias in health care compared with other whites. Good physician-patient communication is negatively associated with perceived racial and ethnic bias.


CONCLUSIONS
Compared with their more socioeconomically advantaged counterparts, poor whites, uninsured blacks, and some uninsured Hispanics are more likely to perceive that racial and ethnic bias operates in the health care they receive. Providing health insurance for the uninsured may help reduce this perceived bias among some minority groups.
Stepanikova
Irena
I
Department of Sociology, Sloan College, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.
Cook
Karen S
KS
D000328:Adult; D001364:Awareness; D015982:Bias; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D054625:Healthcare Disparities; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D017057:Medically Uninsured; D008875:Middle Aged; D011203:Poverty; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D044469:Racial Groups