Policy and Program

The AAHC leads by educating policymakers, opinion leaders, and the public about the value and contributions of the academic health center enterprise to the nation. Academic health centers:

Are vital to the national interest.
Are engines of the 21st century knowledge economy.
Are leaders in research and technology.
Are the essential core of the health system.
Invest in people.
Promote the integration of ideas and services across multiple sectors of the economy.
Foster collaboration with the public and private sectors.

Strengthen the voice of the academic health center enterprise in government as well as in the public and private sectors;
Increase attention to academic health centers as leaders of change with the expertise and willingness to take a principal role in finding solutions to critical national health issues;
Advance the academic health center enterprise as an engine of the 21st century knowledge economy and as a critical pillar of the nation’s infrastructure in health, science, and higher education:
Promote collaboration and new initiatives among academic health centers to provide examples of quality and high performance in all aspects of patient care, biomedical research, and health professions education;
Educate and work with policymakers to contribute academic health center expertise in reshaping the domestic policy agenda;
Promote informed debate on issues concerning the nation’s health and well-being; and
Enhance the nation’s investment in the academic health center enterprise and the supporting infrastructure that is so vital to the nation’s health and economic well-being.