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Political alignment of US physicians shifted from 1991 to 2012
Results from a recent study indicated that since 1991, US physicians have contributed increasing amounts of money to political candidates and have grown more likely to vote for Democrats, reflecting changes in demographics among physicians.
Researchers used public data to study physicians’ donation and voting behaviors and reported that, after adjustment for inflation, political campaign contributions by physicians increased from $20 million during the 1991-1992 election cycle to $189 million in the 2011-2012 cycle, after adjustment for inflation. In the earlier cycle, an estimated 2.6% of physicians made political contributions; that number rose to 9.4% during the 2011 to 2012 cycle. However, the number of physicians contributing to Republican candidates specifically has decreased since 1996, reaching below 50% during the 2007-2008 and 2011-2012 cycles.
The authors noted that there are fewer private practices and more women have entered the field of medicine in recent years, which could explain some of the observed changes. Over the evaluated time period, 31% of female physicians contributed to Republicans, compared with 57% of males.
The researchers also evaluated political contributions according to specialty: Surgeons were more likely to make political contributions to Republicans compared with pediatricians during the 2011-2012 cycle (70.2% vs. 22.1%); however, this gap was less pronounced during the 1991-1992 cycle (65.5% vs. 32.7%).
Both men and women in pediatric specialty fields, including pediatric surgery, were less likely to contribute to Republicans compared with those in other specialties, ranging from 19% to 37% among men and from 4% to 25% among women. An exception was observed among non-specialty pediatricians: The percentage of male general pediatricians who made political contributions to Republicans was 62%, compared with 33% of women in the field.
Fewer than 50% of women in most medical specialties contributed to Republicans, with some exceptions: Women in anesthesiology and otolaryngology contributed in 51% of cases, and those in ophthalmology and pediatric orthopedic surgery contributed in 50% of cases. The field of plastic surgery had the highest number of Republican supporters overall, including 57% of women and 76% of men.
Political leanings among cardiologists were closer to the average during the 2011-2012 election cycle: Among them, 57% of men and 38% of women made political contributions to Republican candidates.
The researchers wrote that the changes to the political alignments of US physicians, as demonstrated in this study, should be studied further.
“Two questions are key. Now that the medical profession sits on both sides of the political aisle, will the Republican and Democrat parties devote unprecedented energy and shape policy to attract physician loyalty? Or will the increasing polarization of the profession increase the political participation of physicians, even as it reduces the ability of physicians to reach consensus on health care policy?”
Disclosures: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.