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APAP Endorses AAMC
Brief in University of Michigan Case
By James F. Cawley, MPH, PA-C
APAP President
At the request of the American Association of Medical
Colleges (AAMC) in early January, the members of the APAP Board of
Directors endorsed the AAMC’s amicus brief in Grutter v. Bollinger,
et. al., now before the United States Supreme Court. APAP was
one of a number of organizations within the health professions to
sign on to the brief that supported race and ethnicity as selection
criteria in the national college and university admissions process.
The brief is scheduled for an April hearing by the Court.
While the brief deals specifically with the medical
profession, legal mandates that change current admissions policies
have the potential to affect admissions procedures for educational
programs within the health professions. APAP’s response to the
AAMC is intended to promote diversity among future health care practitioners
and eliminate the barriers to their entry to educational programs.
APAP recognizes that these outcomes are particularly
important in the health workforce where imbalances and shortages of
individuals exist among underrepresented racial and ethnic groups.
APAP believes that a sound workforce policy should more closely resemble
the populations that constitute American society. APAP’s response
is also on behalf of its member programs whose missions affirm the
education and training of students with a commitment to the underserved,
frequently the culturally and racially diverse groups in our society.
The APAP leadership will continue to monitor the AAMC
case and will report the outcome to its membership when the issue
goes before the Supreme Court. As the organization that represents
PA educational programs nationwide, APAP feels that it is essential
that the organization express its position on vital and relevant health
policy issues. The APAP Board of Directors has sought to take steps
to increase APAP’s profile on the national health policy scene,
and this measure is an important endeavor along these lines. I welcome
any questions regarding the Association’s position.
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