As part of an effort to look at “what differences
make a difference” for bioethicists interested in
clinical decisionmaking, Erik Parens, the editor of this
special section, asked us to look at social class. When
we began our research for this paper, we were surprised
to find that although bioethicists have written much on
social class and such macrolevel issues as access to healthcare
and the distribution of scarce resources, and have paid
some attention to the effects of class on patient-provider
relationships, bioethicists have written little specifically
that looks at the implications of social class for medical
decisions in individual cases.