Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) introduced the EDUCATE Act, a bill that would eliminate federal funding to medical schools that embed the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) agenda into their admission or instruction policies, on Thursday.
Called the Embracing anti-Discrimination, Unbiased Curricula, and Advancing Truth in Education (EDUCATE) Act, the Senate bill corresponds with legislation that was recently introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep. Greg Murphy (R-NC).
“Woke universities are forcing America’s future doctors to care more about race and gender than saving lives,” Kennedy asserted. “The EDUCATE Act would make sure taxpayer dollars don’t fund medical schools that discriminate against talented students or peddle progressive nonsense at the expense of science.”
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) is co-leading the legislation alongside Kennedy.
“The medical field has traditionally been one driven by core tenants of merit, academic excellence, and superb scientific achievement, but that has not stopped the left from their malpractice of injecting DEI into every aspect of education in America,” Schmitt noted. “To cheapen medical schools with woke politics and DEI would be to put the lives of countless Americans in danger as students of extraordinary achievement and meticulous discipline in the field will be cast aside in the name of social justice and equity.”
Medical schools would not be eligible to receive federal funding under the bill if they direct, compel, or incentivize students to adopt or affirm various beliefs associated with DEI and Critical Race Theory (CRT), including that the United States is structurally racist or that people can be lumped into “oppressed” and “oppressor” categories by virtue of their race, ethnicity, or sex.
The bill would also eliminate federal funding for medical schools that deprive students of educational opportunities on the basis of their background by giving preferential treatment to students on the basis of race or by holding classes specifically for those of one racial background. Medical schools would also be ineligible for federal funding if they established or maintained DEI offices.
The introduction of the bill in the Senate was praised by Rep. Murphy, who introduced corresponding legislation in the House of Representatives in March. “Discriminatory DEI practices have rapidly permeated medical schools across the country at great harm to the field of medicine,” Murphy asserted. “Political ideology has no place in the classroom, especially when lives are on the line.”
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“I appreciate Senators Kennedy and Schmitt for recognizing the detrimental impact these initiatives will have on the future of American healthcare,” Murphy went on to add.
The legislation comes in the wake of a bombshell investigation into Duke Medical School by Daily Wire Editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro, who found that the institution appeared to be discriminating against white men.
Discrimination in medical schools has recently become a national conversation, with Elon Musk warning that lowered standards in the medical field in pursuit of equity would put people’s lives at risk.
Elon Musk tries to explain how lowering the standards for doctors could result in more deaths.
Don Lemon is unable to grasp the concept.
This entire exchange is incredible. pic.twitter.com/QJ3efuvVAb
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) March 18, 2024
Data from the Association of American Medical Colleges reveals that the average grades and test scores vary significantly by race, with whites and Asians needing to receive higher scores to be competitive in admissions than black or Hispanic applicants.