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'Above all, do no harm' -- not according to the AMA
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Camel ad 1930's
I came across an interesting and disturbing editorial in the June 24, 2009 New York Times. The editorial was written by Op-Ed Columnist Nicholas D. Kristof and the part of the column that piqued my interest (and curiosity) was in the second paragraph:
"In fact the A.M.A. now represents only 19 percent of practicing physicians (that's my calculation, which the A.M.A. neither confirms nor contests) Its membership has declined in part because of its embarrassing historical record: the A.M.A. supported segregation, opposed President Harry Truman's plans for national health insurance, backed tobacco, denounced Medicare and opposed President Bill Clinton's heath reform plan." (emphasis added)
With the health care debate now front and center and with the American Medical Association (AMA) heavily lobbing congress, I thought it would be interesting to check out the accuracy of Mr. Kristof's claims. What follows are the results of my brief research on the those points raised in Mr. Kristof's recent column:
1. ...the AMA now represents only 19 percent of practicing physicians...
True - In fact, 19% may be overstated. Wikipedia reports that estimates of AMA membership may be as low as 15% of practicing U.S. physicians (135,300 "real, practicing physicians" out of approximately 900,000 practicing physicians in America).
2. ...the AMA supported segregation....
True - In fact, not only has the AMA not denied that it supported segregation but they have belatedly and recently apologized for supporting racist policies. The apology was apparently prompted by their own committee of experts which found that the AMA's actions were "linked to the current paucity of Africa-American physicians, distrust of professional associations by some physicians, and contemporary racial health disparities." By allowing its local AMA chapters to exclude black physicians as members, African-American physicians had no national recognition or political clout which led to deleterious effects on African-American health.
3. ...the AMA opposed Harry Truman's plans for national health insurance..
True - In fact, according to this Washington Post article, the AMA opposed all forms of compulsory security, even old age and unemployment benefits. The AMA's argument at the time was that social programs like social security represent a taking away of individual responsibility which is a step toward either communism or totalitarianism.
4. ...the AMA backed Tobacco..
True - In fact, the Journal of the AMA published its first cigarette advertisement in 1933 and continued to advertise cigarettes for 20 years. One of the most infamous ad slogans was associated with the Camel brand: "More doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette". At the same time its members were touting cigarettes and collecting advertising revenue from tobacco companies, the AMA published (as far back as 1950) the first major study to causally link smoking to lung cancer.
5. ...the AMA denounced Medicare..
True - In fact, even the conservative National Review admits that in 1965, the AMA stood with Republicans in denouncing Medicare as "socialized medicine".
6. ...the AMA opposed President Bill Clinton's health reform plan...
True - In fact, anyone who was around in 1993 remembers the AMA working in concert with those infamous "Harry and Louise" ads that killed off any chance for health reform in the 1990's. Today, expect the AMA to come up with its own "Harry and Louise" ads.
Based upon my brief research, I am led to conclude that the AMA has been consistently opposed to any effort designed to promote the public welfare. The agenda of the AMA is not aligned with the interests of the average American citizen. With a mission to block any meaningful health care reform, why would any hard working American with an ounce of sense listen to the AMA?
I'd appreciate any comments and invite anyone with contrary evidence to post below.
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