Protect Patients’ Access to Health Care
Immense financial challenges — such as unprecedented capacity constraints, insufficient reimbursement by payers, supply chain disruptions, and significant growth in expenses — threaten the long-term financial viability of academic health systems and teaching hospitals. Our goal is to preserve patients’ access to care at these critical anchor institutions.
The AAMC urges Congress to:
Protect the tax-exempt status of nonprofit academic health systems and teaching hospitals, which support education and training, invest in medical research, and provide high-quality patient care, regardless of patients’ ability to pay.
Improve reimbursement from Medicare and Medicaid, ensuring that the nation’s premier academic health systems and teaching hospitals can continue to provide high-quality, specialized care to beneficiaries of these programs.
Preserve supplemental financial support for safety-net hospitals that care for a disproportionate number of low-income patients, including the Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital program and Medicaid state-directed payments.
Uphold the 340B Drug Pricing Program, which, at no cost to taxpayers, allows safety-net hospitals to purchase certain outpatient drugs at a discount from pharmaceutical manufacturers.
Reduce the administrative burden on academic health systems and teaching hospitals, allowing them to focus on their core missions of patient care, research, and training.
The 340B Drug Pricing Program is under threat despite bipartisan support from lawmakers. Find out why it is crucial for many patients and programs.
One in 5 Americans are enrolled in Medicaid, including 40 million children. Proposed cuts would hurt not only patients but the hospitals that care for them.
- April 29, 2025
Nonprofit academic health systems and teaching hospitals reach beyond charity care to improve the lives of patients and communities.
Nonprofit teaching hospitals use their tax-exempt status to offset the cost of medical education, training, complex clinical services, and charity care.
- Dec. 3, 2024
This two-page PDF explains how the 340B program supports safety-net providers across the country.
- June 20, 2024
This agenda outlines the AAMC’s recommendations to prevent maternal injury and death and promote equal access to health care.
- April 23, 2024