UPenn-backed 'Black Doctors Directory' gets reality check after legal challenge

A directory connecting prospective patients to doctors of only one race has been rolled back after a lawsuit.

The lawsuit came from legal activist group Do No Harm, which sued WURD Radio, a Philadelphia radio station that promotes "Black Talk Media."

According to legal documents, WURD controlled a black doctors' directory with the support of the University of Pennsylvania's Penn Medicine department, along with a group called the Consortium of DEI Health Educators.

'... connecting you with Black doctors across major hospitals.'

The radio station promoted the directory on Facebook last year as a resource to bridge "Health Gaps in Philadelphia."

The post stated, "WURD Radio launches the Black Doctors Directory, connecting you with Black doctors across major hospitals."

As of this week, the Philadelphia-area physicians' directory has rolled back its requirement that the doctors listed be of a certain race, while also changing its name.

"The Black Doctors Directory is now the Community Health and Wellness Directory. Ability to participate in the Community Health and Wellness Directory is not determined on the basis of race," Do No Harm wrote in a press release.

The lawsuit noted the directory will have to make more concessions as well.

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The radio station agreed to "only publicize the directory under [the new name] or an equally race-neutral name," and must consider "any licensed physician in the greater Philadelphia area" when adding to the directory.

However, according to the offer of judgment, one caveat to consider was that the licensed physician would have to demonstrate a "commitment to treating patients and communities historically and currently underserved," but that cannot include inquiring about or considering the physician's race.

Since the conclusion of the lawsuit became public, PhillyBlackDoctors.com has been taken down, and WURD's page promoting the directory (as linked through its Facebook post) also no longer appears to be live.

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Then-Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro sits for a radio interview with WURD on November 8, 2022. Photo by Caroline Gutman/Washington Post/Getty Images

The original webpage had promoted finding black doctors in Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey, while showcasing radio segments from WURD Radio that featured guests like the "Twin Sister Docs."

While the listenership for the radio segments is unknown, the online versions of the segments that were visible on the webpage garnered between eight and 32 plays.

"We are grateful that the directory is open to physicians of all races," said Stanley Goldfarb, M.D. and chairman of Do No Harm. "Do No Harm has long opposed 'racial concordance,' a thoroughly debunked theory that only breeds suspicion and prejudice."

Goldfarb added, "When medical providers prioritize expertise and high-quality care, patients will see better health outcomes."

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