EXCLUSIVE: American Medical Association Should Lose Tax-Exempt Status, Watchdog Group Says

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The IRS should investigate and potentially revoke the tax-exempt status of the American Medical Association’s philanthropic arm, according to a new complaint filed Tuesday.

“Based on the evidence in our complaint, we believe the IRS should revoke the AMA Foundation’s tax-exempt status for operating a racially discriminatory program,” Dr. Kurt Miceli, a psychiatrist and chief medical officer at Do No Harm, told The Daily Signal.

“Racially discriminatory scholarships are unlawful and morally wrong, to say nothing of the negative impact they have on public confidence in our medical system.”

Do No Harm, a watchdog group of doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals, aims to expose racial discrimination, transgender ideology, and other politically divisive practices in medicine.

The complaint, first provided to The Daily Signal and addressed to the IRS’ section on Exempt Organizations and Government Entities, asks the IRS to investigate the AMA Foundation over “invidious racial discrimination” in its Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship program.

The complaint notes that the foundation only extends specific scholarships to Americans of certain races.

“The AMA’s obsession with identity politics is no secret, and it should be held accountable for allowing race to dictate applicants’ eligibility for valuable and lucrative learning opportunities,” Dr. Miceli added. “If the AMA Foundation wants to retain its federal tax advantage, it must open its scholarships to applicants of all races.”

The Dr. Richard Allen Williams & Genita Evangelista Johnson/Association of Black Cardiologists Scholarship pays $5,000 to medical students interested in cardiology, but only if they are “African American/Black.”

The Underrepresented in Medicine Scholarship offers $10,000 to winners, who must be “African American/Black, Latine/Hispanic or Indigenous (American Indian, Native Hawaiian, or Alaska Native).” The Patricia L. Austin Family Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship also offers $10,000, but winners must be “of Eastern European descent.”

“Each of these racist exclusions is repugnant to our civil rights laws and ‘the congressional intent underlying [federal law],'” the complaint states. It cites Bob Jones University v. United States (1983), in which the Supreme Court ruled that the IRS had rightly revoked the 501(c)(3) status of Bob Jones University because it forbade interracial dating and marriage.

The AMA Foundation’s racially discriminatory scholarships are “sufficient grounds for the IRS to revoke the AMA Foundation’s tax-exempt status under 26 U.S.C. §501(c)(3),” the complaint states. It quotes the Bob Jones Supreme Court finding that “racially discriminatory” institutions “cannot be viewed as conferring a public benefit within the ‘charitable’ concept” of the common law.

The complaint also cites Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (2023), in which the Supreme Court found that racial preferences in college admissions—often referred to as “affirmative action”—constituted racial discrimination in violation of the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.

If Supreme Court precedent were not enough, President Donald Trump’s “executive orders also leave the [IRS] with no discretion” on the matter, the complaint claims. “The president has rescinded prior executive orders that agencies had invoked to justify race-based classifications in the name of ‘equity.'”

Trump’s Jan. 20, 2025, order directs federal agencies to terminate “all discriminatory programs,” including those related to “diversity, equity, and inclusion,” as well as policies “allowing or encouraging” third parties “to engage in workforce balancing based on race.”

Do No Harm asks the IRS to open an investigation, unless the AMA Foundation alters its policies.

“If the AMA Foundation wishes to avoid such an investigation and maintain its tax-exempt status, it can simply open each of its scholarships and any similar programs to all races,” the complaint notes.

Do No Harm has previously criticized the American Medical Association, particularly on transgender issues. When the world’s largest organization of plastic surgeons recommended delaying “transgender” surgery until a patient reaches the age of 19, the American Medical Association stated it would follow that guidance—but Do No Harm flagged a specific word in the statement that it said gave the AMA “wiggle room” on the issue.

About a month later, the AMA’s board chair suggested that the association would not change its previous support for “gender-affirming care.” This follow-up statement appeared to confirm Do No Harm’s suspicions.

The Daily Signal has reached out to the IRS and the AMA for comment and will update this article with any response.

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