[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 70 (Friday, May 23, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S5141]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   SENATE RESOLUTION 94--COMMENDING THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION

  Mr. WARNER submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on the Judiciary:

                               S. Res. 94

       Whereas the American Medical Association's history is a 
     story of America's best medicine, hope, hard work, and 
     triumph;
       Whereas the American Medical Association is dedicated to 
     maintaining the sanctity of the patient-physician 
     relationship and upholding ethical standards within the 
     medical profession to lead to a better, stronger house of 
     medicine;
       Whereas the American Medical Association promotes its 
     principles through medical school accreditation programs 
     designed to elevate the standard of medical education in the 
     United States through outreach, training seminars, and 
     curriculum development in order to instill core ethical 
     values and beliefs in the physicians of the future; and
       Whereas the future of the American Medical Association 
     relies not only on its past accomplishments, but on the 
     physicians who will journey together for another 150 years 
     and beyond of caring for the United States: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) the American Medical Association is commended for its 
     advancement of high ethical standards among physicians in the 
     United States and setting the standards for physicians 
     throughout the world;
       (2) all physicians and Americans are encouraged to join in 
     the celebration of the 150th birthday of the American Medical 
     Association and rejoice in 150 years of caring for the United 
     States; and
       (3) the American Medical Association is encouraged to 
     continue into the next millennium to represent and promote 
     the goals of the organization in the physician community, and 
     to continue organizing and fostering high quality patient-
     physician relationships across the United States.

  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to The 
American Medical Association [AMA] and to submit a resolution to 
commemorate its 150th Anniversary.
  The American Medical Association was founded by Nathan Smith Davis, 
M.D., in 1847 when he was 30-years-old. At that time, the field of 
medicine was still based on apprenticeship programs and very little 
education was required to become a physician. Nathan Davis recognized 
the need to establish a code of educational principles to elevate the 
standard of medicine by eliminating quackery and other nonscientific 
forms of medicine. Through standardized medical education, students 
trained in the field of medicine now have unified course work and 
training. The accreditation process also guides curriculum development 
in order to ensure that core ethical values and beliefs are instilled 
in the physicians of the future.
  Today, the American Medical Association continues to hold high its 
standards and remains dedicated to maintaining the sanctity of the 
patient-physician relationship, upholding the ethical standards within 
the medical profession that lead to a better, stronger, house of 
medicine.
  Mr. President, the American Medical Association's contribution to the 
health of our country has been a fixture of American culture. Indeed, 
even their symbol has long served as a sign of high quality health care 
materials. We have come to expect quality in every endeavor from the 
American Medical Association as they have built a 150-year reputation 
of caring for our country.
  For example, the American Medical Association's Journal of the 
American Medical Association [JAMA] has long contributed to the 
positive reputation of the association through the distribution of peer 
reviewed health information. Another example of caring for our country, 
JAMA, founded in 1880, expanded the dissemination of scientific data 
and health policy information among physicians and other health 
professionals. JAMA serves as a respected voice in the areas of 
clinical science and disease prevention. In addition, JAMA has 
contributed a great deal to the area of public health, an area in which 
the AMA continues to be vitally involved, as it strives to prepare 
patients and physicians for the 21st century by promoting the science 
and art of medicine.

  Mr. President, I would like to congratulate the American Medical 
Association on its 150th anniversary and all its accomplishments and I 
encourage the AMA to continue caring for our country into the next 
millennium.
  On a personal note, I wish to acknowledge the lifelong contribution 
of my late father, Dr. John W. Warner 1883-1946, to this organization. 
Starting his career as a frontline, decorated combat surgeon in the 
U.S. Army during World War I, he served the needs of the greater 
Washington metropolitan area as an attending physician until his death 
in 1946.

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