American Medical Association

American Medical Association
Motto Helping Doctors Help Patients
Formation 1847
Type professional association
Headquarters Chicago, Illinois
Location United States
Membership 240,000[1]
Official languages English
President Peter W. Carmel
Key people President-elect Jeremy A. Lazarus
Chair Robert M. Wah

The American Medical Association (AMA), founded in 1847 and incorporated in 1897,[2] is the largest association of medical doctors (M.D. and D.O.) and medical students in the United States.

Contents

Scope and operations

The AMA's stated mission is to promote the art and science of medicine for the betterment of the public health, to advance the interests of physicians and their patients, to promote public health, to lobby for legislation favorable to physicians and patients, and to raise money for medical education. The Association also publishes the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), which has the largest circulation of any weekly medical journal in the world.[3] The AMA also publishes a list of Physician Specialty Codes which are the standard method in the U.S. for identifying physician and practice specialties.

While its membership has declined in recent years, the AMA claims approximately 22% of US physicians and medical students as members.[1]

The AMA's political positions through its history have often been controversial. In the 1930s, the AMA attempted to prohibit its members from working for the then-primitive health maintenance organizations that sprung up during the Great Depression, which violated the Sherman Antitrust Act and resulted in a conviction ultimately affirmed by the US Supreme Court.[4] The AMA's vehement campaign against Medicare in the 1950s and 1960s included the Operation Coffee Cup supported by Ronald Reagan. Since the enactment of Medicare, the AMA reversed its position and now opposes any "cut to Medicare funding or shift [of] increased costs to beneficiaries at the expense of the quality or accessibility of care" — and it also "strongly supports subsidization of prescription drugs for Medicare patients based on means testing". However, the AMA remains opposed to any single-payer health care plan that might enact a National Health Service in the United States, such as the United States National Health Care Act. In the 1990s, the organization was part of the coalition that defeated the health care reform advanced by Hillary and Bill Clinton.

Also, the AMA has given high priority to supporting changes in medical malpractice law to limit damage awards, which, it contends, makes it difficult for patients to find appropriate medical care. In many states, high risk specialists have moved to other states that have enacted reform. For example, in 2004, all neurosurgeons had relocated out of the entire southern half of Illinois. The main legislative emphasis in multiple states has been to effect caps on the amount that patients can receive for pain and suffering. These costs for pain and suffering are only those that exceed the actual costs of healthcare and lost income. Multiple states have found that limiting pain and suffering costs has dramatically slowed increases in the cost of medical malpractice insurance. Texas, having recently enacted such reforms, reported that all major malpractice insurers in 2005 were able to offer either no increase or a decrease in premiums to physicians. At the same time however, states without caps also experienced similar results; suggesting that other market factors may have contributed to the decreases. Some economic studies have found that caps have historically had an uncertain effect on premium rates.[5] Nevertheless, the AMA believes the caps may alleviate what is often perceived as an excessively litigious environment for many doctors. A recent report by the AMA found that in a 12 month period, five percent of physicians had claims filed against them.[6]

Claims that the AMA generates $70 million in revenue through its stewardship of Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes appear to be a mischaracterization. The estimate is based on a distortion of the transparent financial information the AMA voluntarily offers in its Annual Report. The AMA has publicly reported this figure represents income from its complete line of books and products, which include more than 100 items, not just CPT.[7]

The AMA sponsors the Specialty Society Relative Value Scale Update Committee which is influential group of 29 physicians, mostly specialists, who help determine the value of different physician's labor in Medicare prices.

Charitable activities

Politics

Throughout its history, the AMA has been actively involved in a variety of medical policy issues, from Medicare and HMOs to public health, and climate change.

Criticisms

Membership

Physician membership in the group is thought to have decreased to less than 20% of practicing physicians.[23] In 2004, the AMA reported membership totals of 244,569, which included retired and practicing physicians along with medical students, residents, and fellows. The medical school section (MSS) reported totals of 48,868 members, while the resident and fellow section (RFS) reported 24,069 members. Combined they account for almost 30% of AMA members. There are currently approximately 661,400 practicing physicians in America.[24] However, MedPage Today estimates that the AMA only represents 135,300 "real, practicing physicians" as of 2005 (15.0% of the United States practicing physicians).[25] When asked about this, Jeremy Lazarus, a speaker in the AMA House of Delegates, stated that membership was stable, avoiding commenting on the low overall numbers (2005 AMSA annual meeting, AMA vs. PNHP healthcare debate, Arlington, Virginia).

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "AMA: After One-Year Increase, AMA Membership Declines Again". MedPage Today. 2007-06-25. http://www.medpagetoday.com/MeetingCoverage/AMA/6006. Retrieved 2010-03-20. 
  2. ^ "AMA (AMA History) 1847 to 1899". American Medical Association. http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/about-ama/our-history.shtml. Retrieved 2009-02-16. 
  3. ^ "About JAMA: JAMA website". http://jama.ama-assn.org/misc/aboutjama.dtl. 
  4. ^ American Medical Ass'n. v. United States, 317 U.S. 519 (1943)
  5. ^ a b Weiss Ratings News: Medical Malpractice Caps Fail to Prevent Premium Increases, According to Weiss Ratings Study
  6. ^ Medical Liability Claim Frequency: A 2007-2008 Snapshot of Physicians
  7. ^ http://www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upload/mm/37/2009-annual-report.pdf
  8. ^ "House passes partial forgiveness for medical student loans". http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2008/03/10/gvsc0310.htm. 
  9. ^ "Medical Student Debt". http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/about-ama/our-people/member-groups-sections/medical-student-section/advocacy-policy/medical-student-debt.shtml. Retrieved 2010-11-07. 
  10. ^ "Give a simple stethoscope, Make a world of difference". http://www.acponline.org/about_acp/chapters/ca/worldscopes.htm. Retrieved August 2009. 
  11. ^ Steven A. Schroeder (April 2011). "Personal reflections on the high cost of American medical care: Many causes but few politically sustainable solutions". Archives of Internal Medicine 171 (8): 722–727. doi:10.1001/archinternmed.2011.149. PMID 21518938. 
  12. ^ AMA (Public Health) Eliminating health disparities
  13. ^ AMA (GLBT) News release from the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association
  14. ^ AMA (GLBT) AMA policy regarding sexual orientation
  15. ^ "Shortage of doctors affects rural U.S.". http://www.boston.com/yourlife/health/diseases/articles/2007/07/22/shortage_of_doctors_affects_rural_us/. Retrieved 2007-07-22. 
  16. ^ "Short supply of foreign doctors". Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. http://web.archive.org/web/20070929121602/http://www.philly.com/philly/health_and_science/20070722_Why_foreign_doctors_are_in_shorter_supply.html. Retrieved 2007-07-22. 
  17. ^ "In-store clinics". http://health.usnews.com/usnews/health/articles/070720/20clinics.htm. Retrieved 2007-07-22. 
  18. ^ AMA policy statement on climate change
  19. ^ http://www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upload/mm/399/hsr-3590-passage-support.pdf
  20. ^ Friedman, Milton; Rose D. Friedman (1990). Free to Choose: A Personal Statement. Mariner Books. pp. 240. ISBN 978-0156334600. 
  21. ^ Berlant, Jeffrey (1975). Profession and Monopoly: a study of medicine in the United States and Great Britain. University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-02734-5. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1081816. 
  22. ^ Cauchon, Dennis (2005-03-02). "Medical miscalculation creates doctor shortage". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2005-03-02-doctor-shortage_x.htm. 
  23. ^ a b Scherz H. (2010-05-07). "Why the AMA wants to muzzle your doctor". Washington Post. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703961104575226323909364054.html. Retrieved 2010-05-10. 
  24. ^ Bureau of Labor Statistics (2008). "Bureau of Labor Statistics: Physicians and Surgeon". http://www.medpagetoday.com/PublicHealthPolicy/PracticeManagement/tb/3516. 
  25. ^ "AMA: Membership Bounces Back Slightly". http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos074.htm#projections_data. 

Further reading

External links