Efforts by medical schools to achieve more economic diversity in their enrollments “have made little or no progress,” according to an analysis published this month by the Association of American Medical Colleges.

In fact, the analysis found, the share of students at the nation’s medical schools who come from the wealthiest fifth of society actually appears to be on the rise, growing from 50.8 percent in 2000 to 55.2 percent in 2005, the most recent year examined. More than three-fourths of entering medical-school students came from the wealthiest two-fifths of society in 2005, the analysis found.

The analysis, based on family-income data reported by students, says the poorest fifth of society never accounted for more than 5.5 percent of matriculating medical-school students during the period covered, from 1987 through 2005.

The report says the lack of economic diversity in medical-school enrollments is partly due to a similar lack of diversity at the colleges that feed medical schools many of their students. It also notes that the median debt incurred by medical students hit the $140,000 mark in 2007 and is rising faster than physicians’ incomes, with one likely result being that medical education “is becoming increasingly out of reach for applicants of modest means.” —Peter Schmidt