The leader of Nashville’s historically black medical college said Friday that a Trump Administration decision to roll-back Obama-era affirmative action policies will trigger a domino effect in higher education that will ultimately lead to fewer doctors in many low-income, minority neighborhoods.
Dr. James Hildreth, president of Meharry Medical College, said the decision will exacerbate a nationwide shortage of black medical students and black doctors that has persisted for decades. And because black doctors are more likely to open clinics in black neighborhoods, the policy shift will ultimately lead to fewer healthcare options for communities that already have too few.
