Medical advocacy organization Do No Harm filed complaints Tuesday against Atlantic Health System and Nemours Children’s Health, alleging discriminatory DEI practices. The complaints, filed with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (HHS-OCR), accused these organizations of race-based hiring practices that may violate federal anti-discrimination laws.
Atlantic Health’s Minority Visiting Clerkship Program (MVCP) for fourth-year medical students is a program specifically for groups “underrepresented in medicine.” According to Atlantic Health, these groups include “African American, Hispanic/Latino and American Indian/Alaska Native.”
“Students selected to participate are awarded inpatient residency rotations, an interview for full-time residency after medical school, mentorship, and valuable networking opportunities with hospital staff,” according to a Do No Harm (DNH) press release obtained by The Federalist.
Similarly, Nemours Children’s Visiting Student Scholar Program is limited to those “underrepresented in medicine as any racial, ethnic, religious, socioeconomic, or ability status group whose numbers in medicine are not reflective of that group’s population of the United States.” Therefore, only members of minority groups qualify for this program, which offers a stipend, several rotation options, and networking opportunities.
DNH alleges that these two organizations are in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits race-based hiring practices. As nonprofits that take federal funds, both organizations are prohibited under Title VI from race-based preferential treatment.
DNH also alleges that these organizations are in violation of Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, a provision which prevents healthcare organizations from engaging in discrimination.
“These programs are especially important for fourth-year medical students, offering meaningful clinical training experiences, while also giving students the chance to showcase their skills at potential future residency sites,” DNH Chief Medical Officer Kurt Miceli told The Federalist. “One’s race has no bearing on whether he or she is able to provide high-quality care.”
This is not the first time DNH has sued medical organizations for racial discrimination practices. In May of last year, DNH filed suit against the medical school at the University of California, Los Angeles, for allegedly maintaining race-based admissions after the Supreme Court overturned affirmative action. The Department of Justice (DOJ) backed the suit this January by filing to intervene.
The DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, led by Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, has pursued investigations into several other medical schools and organizations over alleged DEI admissions practices. The division recently announced an investigation into over 15 medical schools for racial discrimination
The Federalist reached out to Atlantic Health System and Nemours Children’s Health for comment outside working hours, but they have not responded to the request.
