Study challenges finding that Black babies are more likely to survive under the care of Black physicians

New research calls into question the high-profile conclusion of the first major study to show that the race of physicians influences health outcomes.  In August of 2020, a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science made headlines with its finding that Black infants were half as likely to survive to their first birthday when they were cared for by white doctors instead of Black ones.  advertisement But a new analysis in the same journal upends that result, showing that the survival difference seen in the original study was almost entirely due to infants with very low birth weight; the race of the physician did not have a statistically significant effect on the mortality rates of the babies they cared for. While other studies have shown that Black patients are more likely to follow medication guidelines and get cancer screenings and vaccinations when asked to do so by Black doctors, and a 2023 study showed that people of all races in counties with at least one Black physician lived longer, the 2020 paper attracted wide attention. Published just after George Floyd’s death, the study gained traction with many groups who said it showed the urgent need to...