The AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges) has announced Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Congressman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) as recipients of the 2024 AAMC Champion of Academic Medicine Award. This award recognizes their extraordinary leadership in strengthening the health workforce, advancing life-saving medical research, promoting the nation’s public health, and supporting federal programs – particularly those critical to the nation’s teaching health systems and hospitals, medical schools, learners, physician faculty, scientists, and the patients and communities they serve.
“It is my honor to recognize these exceptional leaders and champions of academic medicine,” said David J. Skorton, MD, president and CEO of the AAMC. “Leader Schumer’s unwavering support of teaching health systems and hospitals has helped ensure that they are able to provide cutting-edge patient care to patients not just in New York, but nationwide. Congressman Cole has been a leading advocate for medical research supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), helping to further the cures, treatments, diagnostic tests, and prevention strategies that are helping Americans live longer, healthier lives.”
Leader Schumer’s dedication to increasing investment in physician training and medical research exemplifies his position as a long-standing champion for the nation’s teaching health systems and hospitals, medical schools, faculty physicians, and the patients and communities they serve. In addition to this work, he has been an active lead sponsor of the bipartisan Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act (S. 1302 / H.R. 2389) and played an instrumental role in securing the first increase in Medicare-supported graduate medical education positions in nearly 25 years. This historic increase of 1,200 new residency positions in 2020 and 2022 will produce approximately 3,000 additional physicians over 10 years once fully implemented. His commitment to academic medicine will help improve access to care for patients in communities nationwide and combat the nation’s physician shortage.
“Maintaining and increasing investments in academic medicine is vital to the health and safety of American families. As Majority Leader, I am proud to be working to keep America on the cutting edge of medical research by facilitating the largest increase in Medicare-supported graduate medical education positions in decades. These thousands of positions will begin to address the discrepancy between physician access and the needs of our communities,” said Leader Schumer. “It is an honor to receive the Association of American Medical Colleges’ 2024 Champion of Academic Medicine Award. I look forward to continuing my work to support the next generation of physicians and patients across the country.”
Under Congressman Cole’s leadership, Congress has made critical bipartisan investments in medical research, including eight consecutive years of increases in the NIH budget through fiscal year 2023. This sustained, robust funding growth has allowed NIH-supported researchers at AAMC-member medical schools and teaching health systems nationwide to continue to conduct foundational and life-saving research. Additionally, Congressman Cole’s commitment to addressing health disparities among Native American and other populations has raised awareness about the impact of various drivers on the health of these communities and highlighted opportunities to maximize federal resources to address disparities.
“Medical research is essential to strengthening health care, developing new treatments and cures, combatting diseases, improving the well-being of Americans, and saving more lives. This is why as former Chairman of the House Labor-HHS subcommittee, I increased funding for medical research at the NIH by nearly 50 percent in just seven years. This is an issue I am very passionate about, and although I no longer hold the gavel for this subcommittee, I will always advocate for robust biomedical research funding in order to discover new treatments and cures to better the health of the American people and ensure future generations are free of today’s diseases and chronic conditions,” said Congressman Cole. “It is truly an honor to be awarded the 2024 Champion of Academic Medicine Award, and I want to thank the Association of American Medical Colleges for all of the important work they do to improve medical research and education throughout our nation.”