AMA Endorses Health Reform Plan That Features Public Option

Obama tried to assuage the concerns of physicians last month in a speech before the 158th annual meeting of the AMA in Chicago, when he told a room full of physicians that the public plan "is not your enemy. It is your friend."

The AMA says H.R. 3200 includes provisions key to effective, comprehensive health reform, including:

• Coverage to all Americans through health insurance market reforms


• A choice of plans through a health insurance exchange


• An end to coverage denials based on pre-existing conditions


• Fundamental Medicare reform, including repeal of the flawed sustainable growth rate formula


• Additional funding for primary care services, without reductions on specialty care


• Individual responsibility for health insurance, including premium assistance to those who need it


• Prevention and wellness initiatives to help keep Americans healthy


• Initiatives to address physician workforce concerns