Collecting patients' race, ethnicity, and language (REL) data data can help health care providers and other stakeholders pinpoint disparities in care and make people accountable for addressing them, with potential benefits to cost containment, quality improvement, and outcomes. However, the collection of REL data also presents competing but equally compelling ethical considerations suggesting an "ethical dilemma." What competing risks, benefits, interests, and ethical principles are involved in REL data collection, and how should we balance them?