“No person in the United States shall, on the ground of race,
color or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be
denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under
any program or activity receiving federal financial
assistance.”
Under Title IV, any agency, program, or activity that receives
funding from the federal government may not discriminate on the
basis of race, color or national origin. This is the oldest and
most basic of the many federal and state laws requiring
“meaningful access” to healthcare, and “equal care” for all
patients. Other federal and state legislation protecting the
right to “equal care” outline how this principle will be
operationalized.
State and Federal courts have been interpreting Title VI, and the
legislation that it generated, ever since 1964. The nature and
degree of enforcement of the equal access laws has varied from
place to place and from time to time. Recently, however, both
the Office of Civil Rights and the Office of Minority Health have
become more active in interpreting and enforcing Title VI.
Additionally, in August 2000, the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services Office of Civil Rights issued “Policy Guidance on
the Prohibition Against National Origin Discrimination As it
Affects Persons with Limited English Proficiency.” This policy
established ‘national origin’ as applying to limited English-
speaking recipients of federally funded programs.