program. We went through the normal review process for similarly situated programs because when we looked at it, there was no prohibition in the law saying we couldn’t,” Mr. Chavez said. Board staff took into consideration the various concerns raised in crafting a limited agreement. “But from our stand- point, we felt [AUC] met the standards in place at the time and after our review, our staff put together a recommendation that it be approved because we found no reason why it shouldn’t be.” Ultimately, he says, the board de-
ferred to the legislature’s request to weigh in on the matter. TMA officials said foreign medi- cal schools are not held to the same rigorous standards as U.S. medical schools.
In addition to concerns over accredi-
tation, Senator Zaffirini said that “if the [offshore school’s] argument is about a shortage of physicians, then we should bring in physicians,” not students. Senator Zaffirini says the new law
closes the door on the attorney gen- eral opinion and any potential action the board may have taken on the AUC agreement. “This time, the legislature made our intent very clear.” In July, THECB adopted emergency rules to implement the new law by Sept. 1. Formal rulemaking was expected to take place at the board’s October meet- ing, and Mr. Chavez said he doesn’t an- ticipate any major changes. “It’s pretty clear to us what our charge is, and we are going to execute [this law] as in- tended by the legislature.” But Dr. Wright was careful to clarify what the law is not about: Texas-born students in foreign medical schools looking to return to their home state to practice medicine “have something to contribute. This is not to say we do not want to help figure out a way to re- patriate all of those students,” he said. “But it has to be done in such a way that does not compromise the education of our students. This is about prioritizing Texas medical students. The state puts money into those students. They take precedence. And we do have an obliga- tion to them.”
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October 2013 TEXAS MEDICINE 53
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