The AAP National Nominating Committee has selected Lily J. Lou, M.D., FAAP, of Palos Park, Ill., and Andrew D. Racine, M.D., Ph.D., FAAP, of Bronx, N.Y., as candidates for AAP president-elect. Below are their bios and position statements. The winner will serve as president in 2026. Members can vote from Sept. 11-25. For all of AAP News’ election coverage, visit https://bit.ly/AAPElection2024.
Andrew D. Racine, M.D., Ph.D., FAAP
Bronx, N.Y.
Professional titles
System senior vice president and chief medical officer, Montefiore Health System, Bronx, N.Y.
Executive director, Montefiore Medical Group, Bronx, N.Y.
Medical school and post-graduate education
M.D., New York University School of Medicine, New York City
Ph.D. (economics), New York University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Residency program and fellowship
Boston Children’s Hospital
Involvement in AAP and other organizations
- AAP New York Chapter 3 vice president and president
- AAP District II Advocacy Committee chair
- AAP Committee on Child Health Financing
- Foundation for Child Development Board of Directors, member and vice chair
- National Bureau of Economic Research Board of Directors
- New York Academy of Medicine Board of Trustees
- Organization for Medical and Psychological Assistance for Children Overseas Board of Trustees
Position statement
For years, the United States has chronically underinvested in the major drivers of child health: education, nutrition, access to clean air and water, decent housing, safe communities, and the education and health status of children’s caregivers. It is an unpaid promissory note this country owes to its children. At the same time, pediatricians are expected to rectify these deficiencies in our practices, which are becoming more burdensome with electronic medical record (EMR) documentation demands, practice consolidations and struggles for payment.
The health of America’s children and the satisfaction we receive from pediatric practice are both under threat. The good news is that this country has the wherewithal to rectify this, and no entity is better suited to remind the country of the promissory note it owes to its children than the AAP.
Federalizing Medicaid, reinstituting the refundable child tax credit and guaranteeing universal free preschool for all should be the three pillars of a comprehensive legislative platform. We in the AAP can also pioneer technologies that ease the use of the EMR while simplifying billing and enhancing payment for pediatric services.
The AAP must resolve to be the drum major for child health, marshaling forces beyond our Academy: industry, government, labor, media and faith groups in a united effort to reorient the nation’s priorities, repurpose its resources and establish a child health agenda worthy of this nation.
As a health economist and general pediatrician, I would welcome the opportunity to work with the AAP membership to craft and lead such an agenda.
Lily J. Lou, M.D., FAAP
Palos Park, Ill.
Professional titles
Professor of pediatrics and director of government relations, University of Illinois Chicago
Medical school and post-graduate education
M.D., University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill
Residency program and fellowship
University of Minnesota Hospitals & Clinics, Minneapolis
Fellowship in neonatal-perinatal medicine, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn.
Fellowship in medical education, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque
Involvement in AAP and other organizations
- AAP Section on Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine chair (November 2020-October 2022), District VIII representative to executive committee (2012-’18)
- AAP Alaska Chapter past president (2020-present), president (2014-’20), vice president (2009-’14), secretary-treasurer (2005-’09)
- AAP representative to Maternal Mental Health Task Force, a subcommittee of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Advisory Committee for Women’s Services (2023-present)
- AAP representative to AAP/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/ Association of State and Territorial Health Officials/American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists convening on risk appropriate perinatal care
Position statement
Inclusion of all pediatricians, a voice for children and bridging the gaps
As a subspecialty section leader, chapter leader and public health leader with broad personal experience, I hope to strengthen the unity and inclusion of all pediatricians — subspecialists or generalists, rural or urban, academic or private practice, researchers or clinicians. We must capitalize on the diversity of our membership and work synergistically for our common goal: optimizing the welfare of our children.
It is essential for leaders in pediatrics to have an accurate view of the landscape of child health. Key to this will be more pediatricians with a voice and a seat at the table in public health and health policy leadership. The AAP excels at developing advocacy skills. We need a similar strategy for public health/health policy leadership and sponsorship in order to marshal necessary resources for meaningful change.
The AAP has been a leader in the rise of equity, diversity and inclusion in our national consciousness. We must understand the specific gaps in access so we can target strategies to fill them. These include geographic availability, dearth of some subspecialties, social determinants and political determinants of health. We must support research and implementation of best practices. We need robust support for training the next generation, including pipeline strategies for the underrepresented. And of course, we need fair payment to continue to attract the best and brightest to the calling of pediatrics.
I see the AAP as the organization that can accomplish all this, as the professional home for us all.
