Racial Bias in a Medical Algorithm Favors White Patients over Sicker Black Patients

Author: Carolyn Y. Johnson

Publisher: The Washington Post

Publication Year: 2019

Summary: The following article describes how algorithms are created with the intention of eliminating bias, such as racial bias, but there are variables that can accidently profile individuals. The Washington Post reports that a widely used medical algorithm favors white patients over sicker Black patients even though race was specifically excluded from the data. However, variables determining how much patients would “cost” the healthcare system in the future is not “race-neutral.” Data that does not appear racist may actually be heavily influenced by cultural misunderstandings or unconscious biases.