The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) must stop requiring that grant applications not include terms related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), including the term “pregnant people,” under a new order from a federal judge.
U.S. District Judge Ricardo Martinez, based in Seattle, said in the Jan. 5 ruling that plaintiffs in the case provided examples of harm related to instructions on grant applications from HHS. He ordered the government to stop enforcing a requirement that applicants certify they would not “operate any programs that advance or promote DEI ... or discriminatory equity ideology in violation of Federal anti-discrimination laws,” as well as other agency-wide directives implementing a ban on DEI-related terms in applications.
