The heads of two University of California system medical schools refused to identify biological women as the only people who have uteruses and can get pregnant during a House hearing on diversity, equity, and inclusion in medical schools.Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL), a staunch social conservative, used her question period during a House Education and the Workforce Committee hearing on DEI in medical education to press both the University of California, Los Angeles, and the University of California, San Francisco, medical school directors on how their curricula handle circumstances unique to biological women.Miller argued that both schools called to testify before the committee had not complied with President Donald Trump’s executive order to eliminate DEI from federally funded education programs, including those related to patients who identify as transgender.
The exchanges are part of a controversy of defining what it means to be a woman following debates over the inclusivity of patients who identify as transgender.Highlighting course material from this spring, Miller pressed Dr. Steven Dubinett, the dean of UCLA’s medical school, on whether only biological women can have a uterus.The congresswoman referenced a disclaimer from a UCLA class in May that the use of the terms “she” and “women” was not intended to exclude “those who have a uterus but do not identify with these terms.”“Can someone have a uterus but not be a woman?” Miller asked Dubinett. “Because it seems like your school is promoting that ridiculous idea.”“We’re treating transgender people, but we’re doing that in compliance with state and federal law,” Dubinett said.When Miller reposed the question as a direct yes-or-no, Dubinett did not respond before the congresswoman’s time expired.UCSF Chancellor Sam Hawgood also struggled with Miller’s questions regarding female biology.Miller questioned Hawgood regarding UCSF’s classroom guide titled “Framework for Gender and Sex Concepts in Teaching” that advises medical students to use the term “pregnant people” instead of “pregnant women.”Hawgood said the curriculum was designed for medical students “who are facing a wide diversity of patients.”“Of course, the vast majority of pregnancies are in women, and I have absolutely no problem with using the word ‘pregnant women,’” Hawgood said. “I use it myself.”Hawgood specializes in neonatology and is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics.Terms such as “pregnant people” and “chestfeeding,” instead of breastfeeding, were used by federal health agencies during the Biden administration and drew significant pushback from Republican members of Congress, especially those with medical backgrounds.Miller asked Hawgood if a “nonbiological woman ever had a baby.”“A transgender person can,” Hawgood replied.When Miller repeated the question, Hawgood said, “I would reiterate, we take care of transgender patients.”A similar exchange over women’s reproductive anatomy occurred in January when GOP senators asked an OB-GYN if biological men can become pregnant during a hearing on the abortion pill mifepristone.Sens. Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Ashley Moody (R-FL) asked Dr. Nisha Verma of Physicians for Reproductive Health whether biological males can become pregnant in the context of being able to obtain abortion pills online.DOJ SAYS UCLA USED RACE-BASED ADMISSIONS FOR MEDICAL SCHOOLVerma said it was a polarizing issue and that she was “not really sure what the goal of the question” was.“It is not polarizing to say that women are a biological reality and should be treated and protected as such,” Hawley said in January. “That is not polarizing. That is truth.”
