An apparatus and method for uplink (UL) power control in a broadband wireless access (BWA) communication system are provided. In a communication method for a base station (BS), the channel gain, noise power and speed of each MS are determined, and the maximum allowable power of each mobile station (MS) are calculated using the determined channel gain, noise power and speed of each MS. Because the UL power is controlled according to the speed of the MS and the distance from the BS, the method can provide higher system capacity than the conventional power adaptation scheme.