Govt cautions medical schools on enrollment
Govt cautions health-related schools about possibly discriminatory enrollment decisions
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The federal government has cautioned the nation's medical schools and other health-related schools that their enrollment decisions may be based on an incorrect understanding of the hepatitis B virus, resulting in discrimination.
The government says updated recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention dispel many myths associated with hepatitis B and provide guidance to health-related schools on managing students with the virus.
In a letter, the government says there have been no reports of hepatitis B transmission in the U.S. or other developed countries from medical or dental students to patients since the last update of the recommendations in 1991.
The Justice Department's civil rights division strongly urged health-related schools to review the CDC's recommendations and to ensure that their policies and practices comply with federal nondiscrimination laws.
