Lawmakers from the Republican Party submitted new legislation on Tuesday to ban racial preferences in medical school admissions and accreditation practices.
The Embracing Anti-Discrimination, Unbiased Curricula, and Advancing Truth in Education Act (EDUCATE) was sponsored by Rep. Greg Murphy of North Carolina, a urologist and the sole actively practicing physician in Congress.
The bill’s co-sponsor, Ohio Representative Brad Wenstrup, said doctors should treat patients with the utmost priority, just as they would their own family. He said doctors should be free to do their jobs without being bound by the same rules that have taken root at universities.
Medical schools that discriminate based on race or ethnicity, establish diversity, equality, and inclusion offices, or otherwise promote bigotry would lose federal funds under the Education Act.
Furthermore, 34 other lawmakers have joined the bill as co-sponsors. The bill allows for the teaching of racial health concerns and the gathering of data for research, but it requires accrediting organizations to ensure that their standards don’t encourage these activities.
The medical advocacy group Do No Harm gave the bill excellent marks.
The bill’s chances in the Senate, which Democrats control, are unclear, but it is anticipated to have significant support from Republicans in the lower house.
The Alabama governor, Kay Ivey, signed a measure into law on Wednesday that will ban diversity, equality, and inclusion initiatives at public and private educational institutions.
The relevant law, Senate Bill 129, prohibits state agencies, public universities, and local boards of education from endorsing or funding DEI programs that espouse beliefs that are “divisive.”
With the passage of the anti-DEI bill, Florida has joined several other states in outlawing the practice. In January, the Florida State University System’s board of governors decided to ban DEI programs at public colleges receiving state and federal funding. We removed all DEI-related employment on campus early this month at the University of Florida.
Some have compared this measure to the Parental Rights in Education Act (or “Don’t Say Gay” law) in Florida. Legislative measures of this kind, they say, limit the rights of LGBT and transgender students in schools.
