CPR and Partners Release Report on Intersectional Medical Discrimination During COVID-19

February 11, 2021

CPR and a coalition of civil rights groups and legal scholars are pleased to announce the release of a new report: “Examining How Crisis Standards of Care May Lead to Intersectional Medical Discrimination Against COVID-19 Patients.” Crisis standards of care are used to decide who should receive priority for treatment when resources become scarce, as they have during the COVID-19 pandemic. The report explores and addresses how crisis standards of care may perpetuate medical discrimination against people with disabilities, older adults, and communities of color, in hospital care. Many of these individuals face negative biases and inaccurate assumptions about their value, quality of life, and likelihood of survival that can have deadly consequences. 

The report provides an explanation of crisis standards of care policies implemented by states and hospital systems and how they may discriminate against marginalized individuals and communities, the principles that should apply to prevent discrimination, the relevant civil rights legal framework, and recommended strategies to ensure that crisis standards do not discriminate during the pandemic or in the future.

“The intersectional discrimination about access to and prioritization for treatment during the pandemic is prevalent, persistent and undeniable.  The civil rights community must work together to address this blatant, discrimination that literally involves life and death issues.  The connections between race and disability have never been clearer,” said Cathy Costanzo, our Executive Director. 

Read our full press release.

Find out more about the complaints CPR has filed challenging medical discrimination.