Oral

The American Medical Association (AMA) is currently working to change public health policy in a number of subject areas. This presentation will focus on the AMA’s diverse work in public health. The first presentation will discuss AMA’s efforts to improve adult immunization rates, including collaborations with the American Academy of Pediatrics and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Next, we will discuss AMA’s work in the area of food and nutrition, including efforts to reduce the amount of sodium in the nation’s food supply to reduce risk associated with cardiovascular disease and stroke. The next presentation will review the AMA’s 40 years of work in smoking cessation, including current effort to reduce the amount of smoking seen in movies that are geared toward children. Finally, we will discuss AMA’s work in the field of disaster preparedness, which includes the development of “all hazards” national education and training materials and a supporting national education consortium; active participation in multiple grants supporting healthcare volunteer databases; scenario modeling efforts; health system integration; community planning; and physician public health leadership.

Session Objectives: At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: • Recognize the barriers to increased immunizations rates, and be able to identify and prioritize policy solutions to address immunization barriers • Describe opportunities for change within food and nutrition policy, and identify efforts of the AMA and others to influence the food industry • Describe the historical role of the AMA in the reduction of tobacco use, and identify current tobacco related advocacy initiatives in which the AMA is involved • Describe the commitment of the AMA to the area of national health security • Outline the next steps for improved national disaster response infrastructure

CE Credits: CME, Health Education (CHES), Nursing