ABSTRACT
Physicians in the United States occupy a virtually unparalleled social and economic position. They receive extremely high pay and their profession receives the highest marks both for prestige and for its value to society. Despite long hours and the threat of lawsuits, recent surveys rank the profession not only the highest paid, but among the three “best” overall out of more than 100 examined (Branch and Luciano, 1992). The close connection between being a physician and labor market success has made it among the most studied professions by labor economists interested in the labor market treatment of women and racial minorities (see, among others, Keher, 1976; Bobula, 1980; Hampton, 1991; Dial, 1994; Ohsfeldt and Culler, 1986; Baker, 1996; Hampton and Heywood, 1993, 1994, 1999; Bashaw and Heywood, 2001). In short, the access to the profession by minorities, and their treatment once in it, stand as bell-weathers for minority success more generally.
