Within the past two months, billionaire Michael Bloomberg’s organization Bloomberg Philanthropies has made substantial donations totaling $1.6 billion to medical schools in the United States. These gifts are some of the largest private donations to medical institutions ever.
On July 8, 2024, Bloomberg announced a $1 billion donation to the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in a letter from Bloomberg Philanthropies’ annual report. Nearly a month later, on August 6, Bloomberg Philanthropies announced a $600 million donation split among four historically black medical institutions. These gifts will improve the shortage of doctors the United States faces.
At Johns Hopkins, the university elected to use the money to provide free medical school tuition to any family with an annual income of less than $300,000. Additionally, students whose families make less than $175,000 will have fees and living expenses covered. In light of this gift, nearly two-thirds of the students in Johns Hopkins University’s M.D. Program will benefit from free tuition. With soaring medical school tuition prices, this donation will lessen the burden of such an expensive degree on most medical students.
According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, tuition and fees across all medical schools have increased 81% from 2001 to 2022. With such drastic increases, affordability has become an increasing concern among students, forcing many to resort to student loans and accumulating significant amounts of debt.
Bloomberg’s monetary contribution builds onto his 2018 donation of $1.8 billion to his alma mater, considered the largest private donation to any higher-education institution in modern times. With this recent donation, Bloomberg has donated a total of $4.55 billion to Johns Hopkins University.
His most recent donation of $600 million will provide for multiple institutions, where Howard University College of Medicine, Meharry Medical College, and Morehouse School of Medicine will each receive $175 million; Charles R. Drew University of Medicine & Science will receive $75 million; and Xavier University’s Oschner College of Medicine, which is currently in development, will receive a $5 million grant.
Days after the announcement of his second donation, Bloomberg spoke at the annual convention of the National Medical Association, pointing out that only four historically black medical schools remain open. “Lack of funding and support driven probably in no small part by prejudice and racism, have forced many to close their doors,” Bloomberg said regarding historically black medical institutions. “We cannot allow that to happen again, and this gift will help ensure it doesn’t.”
With the underrepresentation of black doctors, the role of these historically black medical schools has become even more pivotal regarding equity and inclusion. According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, only 5.7% of doctors are Black or African-American, which is significantly lower than 14.4% of the population that is Black.
This disparity is concerning since it has detrimental effects on healthcare in the United States. For instance, a 2003 study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine shows that Black patients are more satisfied when treated by a Black doctor. Similarly, a study published in 2020 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences concluded that black infants are more likely to survive if treated by a Black doctor.
Nevertheless, the funding that Bloomberg has provided these medical institutions will enable many prospective students who might otherwise be unable to acquire a medical education due to the high price tag. Furthermore, his gifts will improve the resources available at historically black medical institutions, helping increase the diversity among doctors.
