In his final speech as president of the American Medical Association, Jack Resneck Jr., MD, spoke to the AMA House of Delegates about significant wins during his tenure — including movement on the AMA Recovery Plan for America's Physicians — as well as outstanding challenges still facing the organization's members, according to a June 9 AMA news release.
He also said the "record number of physicians" who say they are considering leaving the profession is "a stunning indictment of the dysfunctional healthcare environment that is pushing record numbers of physicians to the brink."
Dr. Resneck handed over the reins of the AMA to the incoming president, Jesse Ehrenfeld, MD, who began his one-year term on June 13.
In his prepared speech, he listed some of the biggest challenges the AMA is facing, including growing prior authorization hurdles, a Medicare payment system that is unsustainable, and burnout that is not only jeopardizing the physician workforce but also access to care for patients.
"The AMA doesn't win every battle," Dr. Resneck said. "But we are more resolute in our work because of the challenges and existential threats to our profession and our patients."
In terms of "significant gains" while he was AMA president, Dr. Resneck pointed to progress at both the state and federal levels in "constraining prior authorization," the extension of Medicare coverage for telehealth, and legislation that would align Medicare's fee schedule with the Medicare Economic Index.
He referred back to an oft-quoted comment he made in a speech in November 2022. "We need to fix what's broken, and it's not the doctor," he repeated, noting "duct-taping the widening cracks of a dilapidated Medicare payment system isn't sustainable. Linking physician payment to inflation is an absolute top priority, an existential must to keep practices afloat and pillar No. 1 of the plan. An important step on that path was the recent introduction of a bipartisan bill to finally align the Medicare fee schedule with MEI."
Here are some excerpts from his prepared speech.
On Medicare cuts …
"I can't sugarcoat the very real threats. I'm still appalled by the Medicare cuts. What on earth was Congress thinking," he said in a prepared statement. "Practices are on the brink. Our workforce is at risk. Access to care stands in the balance. We absolutely must tie future Medicare payments to inflation, and we're readying a major national effort to finally achieve Congressional action."
On political leaders …
"Shame on political leaders, fueling fear and [sowing] division by making enemies of public health officials, of transgender adolescents, of physicians doing anti-racism work and of women making personal decisions about their pregnancies."
On gun violence …
"I'm also deeply disappointed by our nation's lack of progress to address the public health crisis of gun violence. Preventable and needless homicides and suicides continue, and the political inaction is atrocious."
On physician burnout …
"I'm sure some of the headlines about burnout stop you in your tracks — they certainly keep me up at night. One in five physicians plans to leave their practice within two years, while one in three are reducing their hours. Only 57 percent of doctors today would choose medicine again if they were just starting their careers. This means that about two in five physicians go beyond mere daydreams of another career to wishing they had never chosen this path in the first place."
On future challenges …
"New challenges keep appearing, and many existing ones seem to endure. We are knocked down … we dust ourselves off and get back up. We accumulate victories — some small, some large … but we keep running. Don't bother looking for the rest areas between our races — I can assure you … you won't find them. But as physicians and healers, we are already very accustomed to persevering. And we're darn good at it."