The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and the Association of Academic Health Centers (AAHC) announced Thursday the approval of a merger that will see both nonprofit organizations come under the former’s banner.
The deal is slated to complete April 1 and was “overwhelmingly approved” by the voting members of each group, according to a joint release.
“Academic medicine is evolving rapidly, especially during this time of pandemic,” AAMC President and CEO David J. Skorton, M.D., said in a statement. “This merger will enable the academic medicine community to amplify our efforts to improve the health of people everywhere through our new strategic plan and speak out even more strongly with one voice in support of the patients, families and communities we serve.”
Founded in 1876, AAMC boasts membership including 155 accredited U.S. medical schools, 17 accredited Canadian medical schools, roughly 400 teaching hospitals and health systems and over 70 academic societies. The organization said it acts in the interest of academic medicine’s more than 186,000 full-time staff, 94,000 medical students, 145,000 resident physicians, 60,000 graduate students and postdoctoral researchers and the “millions” of others employed by academic health institutions.
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AAHC was founded in 1969 and lists over 120 U.S. and international member organizations on its website. The latter are part of the Association of Academic Health Centers International (AAHCI), a subsidiary of the U.S. organization founded in 2008.
The nonprofits said they are developing “a detailed integration plan … to ensure a smooth transition of AAHC employees and the continuation of the AAHC portfolio with little disruption by the effective date of the merger.”
AAHC President and CEO Steven L. Kanter, M.D., will be joining AAMC as a senior adviser to Skorton, according to the announcement. Kanter will also stay on as the executive director of AAHCI, which is also being acquired by AAMC.
“This merger will provide greater opportunities for members of the AAHC, the highest level of health system leaders, to better collaborate across all the health professions and grow a vibrant international network,” Kanter said. “I am excited to begin our work together to educate and diversify the next generation of health professionals, strengthen biomedical research and improve health care.”