Press Release
Do No Harm Releases Second Report Documenting Medical Schools Skirting SCOTUS Ban on Race-Based Admissions
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RICHMOND, VA; January 21, 2025 – Today, Do No Harm published a report titled “Skirting SCOTUS: How Medical Schools Will Continue to Practice Racially Conscious Admissions.”
The report, a follow-up to Do No Harm’s first “Skirting SCOTUS” report, reveals evidence that medical schools have continued to use race-based admissions after the Supreme Court ruled in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (SFFA) that such practices violate the law.
Before SFFA, Asian and white students were subjected to harsher admissions standards than Hispanic and black students. After SFFA, admission standards should have been applied equally across all races. However, in 2024, matriculating Asian students averaged an 89th percentile score on the MCAT, compared to the 84th percentile for white students, 67th percentile for Hispanic students, and 68th percentile for black students. These statistics suggest that medical schools are still unfairly requiring higher standards for Asian and white applicants than for Hispanic and black applicants.
Because affirmative action created dramatically harsher admissions standards for white and Asian applicants compared to black and Hispanic applicants, proper implementation of race blind admissions should have culminated in a pronounced shift in medical school demographics. That transformation has been observed at some medical schools. However, others have seemingly ignored the Supreme Court’s ruling. At Texas Christian University (TCU), University of Cincinnati, University of Washington, and Kaiser Permanente School of Medicine, the class of 2028 had a higher percentage of black or Hispanic students than the class of 2027. Similarly, Quinnipiac University, University of Maryland, University of Chicago, and Duke University medical schools had an increased percentage of “underrepresented” students in the class of 2028 as compared to 2027.
Many of these schools still boast about using race-based considerations in admissions. For example:
- The University of Cincinnati College of Medicine’s website says that it is “committed to recruiting and supporting a diverse student body, faculty, leadership, and administrative staff.”
- The Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine says that “equity, inclusion, and diversity are woven into every aspect of Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine, including pipeline efforts, admissions, staffing, curriculum, student support, and community.”
- The University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine says it is “committed to the recruitment and retention of a diverse class of students.”
Given the unexpected post-SFFA matriculant statistics, and several schools’ renewed commitment to DEI-centered admissions, the report concludes that medical schools are circumventing the Supreme Court’s decision.
“Clearly, medical schools are finding workarounds to factor in race and ethnicity when they should be focused on aptitude and merit,” said Ian Kingsbury, Director of Research at Do No Harm. It is not only qualified students who pay the price for these discriminatory practices, but also patients. Failing to prioritize medical expertise will further erode trust in the doctor-patient relationship and undermine the integrity of the entire healthcare system.”
Click here to read the report.
Do No Harm, established in April 2022, has rapidly gained recognition and made significant strides in its mission to safeguard healthcare from ideological threats. With over 15,000 members, including doctors, nurses, physicians, and concerned citizens across all 50 states and 14 countries, DNH has achieved over 10,000 media hits in top-tier publications and garnered widespread attention through numerous broadcast news appearances.