Racial Preferences in the Democrats’ Health Care Bill

All 1,018 pages of the Democrats’ health care bill can be inspected here.The bill includes racial preferences.

Under the Democrats’ health carebill, if a medical school wants to increase its chances of receivingmany different kinds of grants and contracts from the federalgovernment, it should have a demonstrated record of trainingindividuals who are from underrepresented minority groups. This isbecause the Democrats’ health care bill requires the Secretary ofHealth and Human Services to give preference to the entities that havedemonstrated such a record in the awarding of these contracts tomedical schools and other institutions.

Thebill does not state what would qualify as a “demonstrated record”, sowe can expect medical schools and the other entities to do whateverthey think they can get away with to train as many “individuals who arefrom underrepresented minority groups” as they think they might need tohave a better “demonstrated record” in this regard then other entitiescompeting for the grants and contracts.The Democrats’ health care bill creates a very significant financialincentive for medical schools and other entities to lower admissionstandards for “individuals who are from underrepresented minoritygroups” if that is what it takes to have the winning “demonstratedrecord”.

On page 879-880, the bill states that the Secretary of Health and Human Services

“shallmake grants to, or enter into contracts with, eligible entities . . .to operate a professional training program in the field of familymedicine, general internal medicine, general pediatrics, or geriatrics,to provide financial assistance and traineeships and fellowships tothose students,interns, residents or physicians who plan to work in or teach in thefield of family medicine, general internal medicine, generalpediatrics, or geriatrics.”

Continue…

2009-07-22