Affirmative Action Has No Place in Education – or Health Care
ST. PAUL, Minn. — After a stunning rebuke of decades-old affirmative action policies, the U.S. Supreme Court has set the stage for reversing affirmative action policies applied to the entire American health care system.
On June 29th, in a 6-3 vote on Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, the Supreme Court held that the race-based admissions processes of both Harvard University and the University of North Carolina violate the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.
In the wake of this significant decision, physician groups and health care corporations are asking how this will impact medical education and patient care. The most direct result will be the reversal of discriminatory policies in medical school admissions, allowing patients to be treated by the most qualified medical professionals, regardless of race or ethnicity.
“Unfortunately, affirmative action has quietly entered the exam room through terms like ‘health disparities’, ‘health equity’, and the push to use the electronic health record to collect ‘Social Determinants of Health’. The entire health care system is now focused on the collection and reporting of data on color, culture, and innumerable other statistics instead of individualized treatment for the patient sitting in front of the doctor,” said Twila Brase, RN, PHN, president and co-founder of CCHF. “For the sake of patients, the elimination of affirmative action needs to happen not only in the classroom, but in the exam room.”
In June, CCHF met with congressional staffers and members of Congress on Capitol Hill to discuss a variety of issues, including the detrimental effect of Social Determinants of Health on patients and privacy.
Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom (CCHF) applauds the Supreme Court’s ruling as a critical step that fosters medical excellence, individualized patient care, and health freedom.
