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U.S. Department of Justice settles with the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey over discrimination against people with hepatitis B
On March 5, the United States Department of Justice issued a press release titled Justice Department Settles with the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey Over Discrimination Against People with Hepatitis B. Portions of the press release are reprinted below.
The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement with the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School (UMDNJ) under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The settlement resolves complaints that the UMDNJ School of Medicine and the UMDNJ School of Osteopathic Medicine unlawfully excluded applicants because they have hepatitis B. This is the first ADA settlement ever reached by the Justice Department on behalf of people with hepatitis B.
In 2011, the two applicants in this matter applied and were accepted to the UMDNJ School of Osteopathic Medicine, and one of them was also accepted to the UMDNJ School of Medicine. The schools later revoked the acceptances when the schools learned that the applicants have hepatitis B. The Justice Department determined that the schools had no lawful basis for excluding the applicants, especially because students at the schools are not even required to perform invasive surgical procedures, and that the exclusion of the applicants contradicts the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) updated guidance on this issue.
According to the CDC’s July 2012 “Updated Recommendations for Preventing Transmission and Medical Management of Hepatitis B Virus (HBV)-Infected Health Care Workers and Students,” no transmission of Hepatitis B has been reported in the United States from primary care providers, clinicians, medical or dental students, residents, nurses, or other health care providers to patients since 1991.
Related Links
U.S. Department of Justice press release of 3/5/13Hepatitis B Foundation blog post of 3/7/13: Justice Department Settles with the UMDNJ over Discrimination against People with Hepatitis BBackground information from the Hepatitis B Foundation