Health system coalition ends use of race-based algorithms: 5 things to know

A coalition of health systems in the Philadelphia area said in an Oct. 21 news release that they will end the use of race adjustments in widely used clinical tools that guide patient care.

Five things to know:

1. The Regional Coalition to Eliminate Race-Based Medicine stated that all member health systems have agreed to phase out race adjustments in clinical decision support tools used for lung, kidney and OB-GYN care.
   
   
2. The coalition includes Children's Hospital of Philadelphia; Doylestown (Pa.) Health; Grand View Health in Sellersville, Pa.; Independence Blue Cross in Philadelphia; Jefferson Health in Philadelphia; Main Line Health in Radnor, Pa.; Nemours Children's Health in Philadelphia; Penn Medicine in Philadelphia; Redeemer Health in Meadowbrook, Pa.; St. Christopher's Hospital for Children in Philadelphia; Temple Health in Philadelphia; Trinity Health Mid-Atlantic in Philadelphia; and Virtua Health in Marlton, N.J.​​
   
   
3. "The recent elimination of race adjustments in clinical decision support tools is a significant milestone in our efforts to ensure that all patients receive the most effective treatment," said Keith Leaphart, DO, enterprise executive vice president and chief health equity and community impact officer at Jefferson Health said in the press release. "Our partnership with the Regional Coalition to Eliminate Race-Based Medicine reflects our dedication to transforming healthcare for the better. Together, we are working to create a system where decisions are based solely on individual health needs, not race, ultimately leading to improved outcomes for all patients."
   
   
4. The coalition said it is committed to addressing racial adjustments in 15 clinical decision support tools that could negatively affect patient outcomes.
   
   
5. The coalition previously recommended removing race from the formula commonly used to assess kidney function, known as the estimated glomerular filtration rate. According to the coalition, once hospitals and health systems in the region adopted this change, more than 721 patients were able to advance on the kidney transplant list. As a result, 63 of those patients successfully received kidney transplants in 2023.