A recent report by the nonprofit organization Do No Harm (DNH) has raised concerns about medical schools allegedly circumventing a 2023 Supreme Court ruling that prohibits the use of race-based factors in admissions.
DNH, which represents a diverse group of stakeholders including physicians, nurses, medical students, patients, and policymakers, is dedicated to keeping identity politics out of medical education, research, and clinical practice.
According to Fox News, DNH had previously released a report revealing that despite the Supreme Court's ruling, many within the healthcare establishment remain ideologically committed to racial favoritism, rejecting the principle of race blindness.
The organization also pointed out that the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and several medical specialty societies and medical schools had openly criticized the Supreme Court decision, hinting at possible attempts to bypass the Courts ruling.
The recently published report, "Skirting SCOTUS: How medical schools will continue to practice racially conscious admissions," utilized both MCAT data and available admissions data. DNH noted that due to the AAMC's non-disclosure of school-level data, it remains unclear which medical schools are still implementing affirmative action and to what extent. The report also excludes public universities, which are already prohibited from such practices.
The report reveals that "among the thirteen schools that published clear racial/ethnic demographic data for the class of 2027 and 2028, four experienced an increase in the proportion of black or Hispanic students." It further explains that adherence to the Supreme Court ruling is not only gauged by demographic changes but also by the extent to which affirmative action influenced admissions policies prior to the ruling.
The report suggests that if the penalty assigned to white and Asian applicants was modest, the demographic change would reflect this, and vice versa. It specifically highlights the admissions policies of Quinnipiac, Maryland, Chicago, and Duke as worthy of scrutiny. These schools, the report states, "admit black and Hispanic medical students at a rate that far exceeds their representation in the applicant pool (13% in 2024)."
The report further argues that "the fact, in conjunction with the reality that black and Hispanic matriculants to medical schools have significantly lower GPAs and MCAT scores than other matriculants, is a signal that the schools continue to penalize or reward students on the basis of race."
Ian Kingsbury, research director at DNH, expressed his shock at the blatant disregard of the Supreme Court ban on affirmative action by some medical schools. He told Fox News Digital, "You can see it in the data, and then you can tie that data to the statements that the schools themselves are making, where they're publicly rebuking the Supreme Court and where they're talking about the importance of diversity in their admissions process."
The report also questions the decision of some schools to stop publishing data after the Supreme Court ruling, suggesting that this could be an attempt to hide improper implementation or the statistical reality associated with proper implementation. "Given pressure from the AAMC to continue to racially discriminate, coupled with the reality that many medical schools have been captured by far-left ideologues, these schools as well as the dozens of others that didnt publish any data do not automatically earn a presumption of innocence," the report states.
Kingsbury lamented the fact that the issue of racial discrimination in higher education remains unresolved. "And there's more work to be done," he added.
In 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, rejected the use of race as a factor in college admissions. The ruling was a result of two separate legal challenges concerning the admissions processes of Harvard University, a private institution, and the University of North Carolina, a public one. Both cases were brought by the student activist group Students for Fair Admissions, which initially sued Harvard in 2014 for violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.
Fox News Digital reached out to AAMC, Quinnipiac University, University of Maryland, University of Chicago, and Duke University for additional comment. AAMC directed Fox News Digital to its most recent data publication on medical school applicants and enrollment in 2024.
David J. Skorton, MD, AAMC president and CEO, said in a statement, "We are encouraged by the increase in first-time applicants to medical school. The AAMC and its member medical schools are committed to continuing our efforts to increase the supply of physicians and to increase the range of backgrounds and experiences in the applicant and matriculant pools that are critical to the future physician workforce.
Evidence shows that a more varied workforce can improve access to health care and the health of our communities." The report by DNH underscores the need for transparency and adherence to the Supreme Court ruling in medical school admissions. It also highlights the ongoing debate around affirmative action and the role of identity politics in higher education.
The question remains: are medical schools truly upholding the principles of fairness and equality in their admissions processes, or are they subtly perpetuating racial favoritism under the guise of diversity?
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