A conservative legal firm has accused the world-renowned Cleveland Clinic of racial discrimination, prompting a massive federal investigation into the practices of the healthcare provider.
According to the Daily Wire, the Department of Health and Human Services’s Office of Civil Rights said last week that it was investigating the Cleveland Clinic over its promotion of its “Minority Stroke Program” and the “Minority Men’s Health Center.”
The investigation started when the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL) filed a complaint on August 14 on behalf of Do No Harm accusing the clinic of engaging in racial discrimination.
Do No Harm is an organization dedicated to depoliticizing medicine, according to the Daily Wire report.
HHS official Daniel Shieh wrote to WILL on September 10 informing them that the agency was opening an official inquiry into allegations that the clinic “treats white individuals differently from certain racial and ethnic minorities in the tailoring and provision of services.”
“OCR has reviewed the complaint and has determined that it has sufficient authority and cause to investigate the allegations under its authorities,” Shieh wrote. “Therefore, we have initiated an investigation and will contact you should we need any additional information.”
WILL lawyer Cara Tolliver said that the Minority Stroke Program and the Minority Men’s Health Center disregard care for an “entire class of individuals” who are not deemed minorities.
“The problem however is that these patient programs are limited to certain racial minorities and segregated on the basis of race which violated anti-discrimination laws,” Tolliver told The Daily Wire. “HHS’s decision to open an investigation into Cleveland Clinic is a hopeful step forward to illuminating unlawful uses of race in healthcare in favor of an individualized and race neutral approach to medicine that conforms with law.”
According to the report, if HHS determines that Cleveland Clinic is in violation of the law, the clinic may voluntarily comply and adapt the programs. If it refuses, its access to federal funds could be suspended or terminated.