A year ago, the United States Supreme Court eliminated affirmative action from higher education. The controversial ruling immediately prompted widespread backlash and raised numerous questions about its potentially chilling effect on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs in corporate America. And since that decision, the rhetoric surrounding the issue has only become more divisive and dangerous. It is essential that executives, especially in the health care industry, push back and protect the care of our patients, the integrity and quality of which depends on our truly diverse and inclusive organizations.
A group of Republican lawmakers recently introduced legislation to end all DEI programs within the federal government. Senator Bill Cassidy claimed that “DEI institutionalized discrimination in hiring.” Senator J.D. Vance asserted that the “DEI agenda is a destructive ideology that breeds hatred and racial division” and insisted, “Americans’ tax dollars should not be co-opted to spread this radical and divisive ideology.”
The legislation was met with criticism and, given the realities of a divided Congress, it was inevitably dead upon arrival on Capitol Hill. However, its very consideration demonstrates continued devolution of the conversations about DEI and a basic misunderstanding of related programs. As health care industry leaders, we have a choice: We can bow to prevailing partisan headwinds, or we can do the moral thing.
This essential responsibility is particularly important in the biopharma industry because we pursue new medicines that are designed to improve health outcome and quality of life for all. It is incumbent on us to take on some of the world’s most challenging and intractable medical problems and solve for them. Without embracing diversity, we will continue to see disparities that not only cost health care systems billions, but disproportionally affect the lives of underrepresented and vulnerable patient populations.
We have embraced both professional and moral obligations to improve the state of health care with empathy and urgency. These principles define a common purpose independent of political context and its frequent oscillations. At this moment, there are loud and forceful voices denigrating DEI. However, their noisy assertions do not align with the evidence. The research on diversity has been consistent for years. The literature repeatedly demonstrates that homogenous groups reinforce existing biases. We cannot ensure the health of our population by taking a one-size-fits-all approach. We are a diverse nation with different health needs and our health care system must reflect that. Failure to understand and attend to the clearly evident array of different health care requirements of populations of diverse individuals is ignorant to that which is obvious in data and evidence and can stifle progress and threaten lives.
Implementing DEI can be slow. Recent reports from the Biotechnology Innovation Organization and PhRMA show that the industry is making certain but limited strides toward a more diverse network of care providers. There is still much work to be done. Only 34% of pharma leadership positions are held by women and 24% by people of color. Fewer than 20% of organizations have clear goals to advance women and people of color. Unsurprisingly, 68% of C-suite positions are still held by white men.
While there are larger challenges that will take time to resolve, one of the most important learnings from Cytokinetics’s DEI initiatives in the last several years is that progress has to involve an enduring dedication to these objectives over the longer term. Our industry knows better than anyone else the persistent fortitude required to reach pivotal inflection points. Given what is at stake for patients, employees, and society, pursuing inclusive workplaces requires the same perseverance to impact hearts and minds and is a no-brainer. Fewer minority and women employees in entry-level positions could drive further inequities in leadership positions. Unfortunately, the problem compounds. A less diverse workforce can exacerbate challenges to recruiting, training, and retaining diverse employees. That race to the bottom will impede innovation and ultimately will trickle down to patients and their medical care.
Leaders in health care and biopharma can prioritize DEI by developing roadmaps and benchmarks and revisiting them yearly. These plans should contain precise objectives and measures that are both comprehensive and rational. It doesn’t always work to apply the same metrics enterprise-wide. Diversity needs can vary by role, department, or location as well as points in time. Once developed, we can share DEI goals across our organizations and regularly report on progress. If we fall short, we should diagnose why and intervene as we ultimately know best. Accountability and transparency matters.
Most of us joined this industry out of personal dedication to doing what’s difficult and meaningful. Health care and biopharma need to lead the way. We need to show other industries how we can overcome the polarization and political pressures to push forward and better serve underrepresented communities. If we fail or falter now, lives will be needlessly lost. My fellow health care and biopharma leaders must hold the line so that never again are medicines developed for and by only some of us.
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