TY  - RPRT
        AU  - Halla, Martin
AU  - Kah, Christopher
AU  - Sausgruber, Rupert
        TI  - Testing for Ethnic Discrimination in Outpatient Health Care: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Germany
        PY  - 2021/Nov/
        PB  - Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
        CY  - Bonn
        T2  - IZA Discussion Paper
        IS  - 14886
        UR  - https://www.iza.org/index.php/publications/dp14886
        AB  - To test for ethnic discrimination in access to outpatient health care services, we carry out an email-correspondence study in Germany. We approach 3,224 physician offices in the 79 largest cities in Germany with fictitious appointment requests and randomized patients' characteristics. We find that patients' ethnicity, as signaled by distinct Turkish versus German names, does not affect whether they receive an appointment or wait time. 
In contrast, patients with private insurance are 31 percent more likely to receive an appointment. Holding a private insurance also increases the likelihood of receiving a response and reduces the wait time. This suggests that physicians use leeway to prioritize privately insured patients to enhance their earnings, but they do not discriminate persons of Turkish origin based on taste. Still, their behavior creates means-based barriers for economically disadvantaged groups.

        KW  - discrimination
KW  - immigrants
KW  - ethnicity
KW  - health care markets
KW  - health insurance
KW  - inequality
KW  - correspondence experiment
KW  - field experiment
        ER  -