AAMC Deeply Disappointed by SCOTUS Decision on Race-Conscious Admissions

WASHINGTON, June 29, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges) President and CEO David J. Skorton, MD, and Frank Trinity, JD, AAMC chief legal officer, issued the following statement on the decision by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) in Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina and Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard: 

"We are deeply disappointed with the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to dismantle its longstanding precedent in the 2003 case, Grutter v. Bollinger, which had recognized student body diversity as a compelling interest permitting the limited consideration of race in admissions. Today's decision demonstrates a lack of understanding of the critical benefits of racial and ethnic diversity in educational settings and a failure to recognize the urgent need to address health inequities in our country.

The AAMC, informed by decades of research, recognizes the undeniable benefits of diversity for improving the health of people everywhere. We remain committed to enhancing health professional education and practice by emphasizing critical thinking, innovation, effective communication with all patients, and increased access to patient care for an increasingly diverse population.

In addition, the AAMC believes that a diverse and inclusive biomedical research workforce with individuals from historically excluded and underrepresented groups in biomedical research is critical to gathering the range of perspectives needed to identify and solve the complex scientific problems of today and tomorrow.

The AAMC and its member institutions are committed to providing the most effective medical education and patient care, as well as advancing scientific discovery to improve lives in our communities. We will work together to adapt following today's court decision without compromising these goals. The health of everyone depends on it."

For more information on the impact of race-conscious admissions on medical education, visit aamc.org/SCOTUSadmissions.

The AAMC welcomes our member medical schools, teaching hospitals and health systems, and academic medical societies, as well as organizations focused on health, education, and research to affirm our statement. If you wish to be added to the list of signatories, please contact [email protected] (include "Statement Support" in the subject line).

The AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges) is a nonprofit association dedicated to improving the health of people everywhere through medical education, health care, medical research, and community collaborations. Its members are all 157 U.S. medical schools accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education; 13 accredited Canadian medical schools; approximately 400 teaching hospitals and health systems, including Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers; and more than 70 academic societies. Through these institutions and organizations, the AAMC leads and serves America's medical schools and teaching hospitals and the millions of individuals across academic medicine, including more than 193,000 full-time faculty members, 96,000 medical students, 153,000 resident physicians, and 60,000 graduate students and postdoctoral researchers in the biomedical sciences. Following a 2022 merger, the Alliance of Academic Health Centers and the Alliance of Academic Health Centers International broadened the AAMC's U.S. membership and expanded its reach to international academic health centers.

Media Contact:
John Buarotti
(202) 828-0632
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SOURCE Association Of American Medical Colleges