Study Reveals Shortage of Black Physicians within Medicare Advantage Plans

A recent study reveals that Black and Latino Medicare Advantage plan enrollees frequently encounter a shortage of healthcare providers who reflect their racial or cultural identities. Conducted by researchers at Brown University, the analysis underscores a critical disparity in healthcare representation that may exacerbate health inequities within marginalized groups. Findings indicate that Black and Hispanic physicians are significantly less represented in Medicare Advantage networks than their white counterparts. Statistically, 51.1% of white physicians in an enrollee’s locality are network participants, contrasted with only 43.2% of Black physicians and 44% of Hispanic physicians. Alarmingly, approximately 20% of Black and Hispanic beneficiaries report having no in-network physicians of their race or ethnicity. Dr. Amal Trivedi from Brown highlights this systemic issue, noting that merely 5% of physicians nationally are Black and 6% are Hispanic. The study utilized data from Ideon for 2019 networks along with 2022 statistics from the Association of American Medical Colleges to evaluate these disparities. Access to culturally congruent healthcare providers is vital for fostering comfort and trust within patient communities.