FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - July 12, 1999
Contact: Tim Clarke, Jr., AMSA Director of Public Relations
Daytime Phone: (703) 620-6600, ext. 207

Reston, VA - The American Medical Student Association (AMSA), the nation's largest independent medical student organization, announced its support today for the Senate Democratic version of the 'Patients' Bill of Rights' - Congress' latest attempt to install comprehensive patient protections.

"AMSA has been dedicated, for more than 50 years, to improving the quality of medical care delivered to all Americans," said David Grande, MD, AMSA's national president. "Supporting the legislation offered by Sens. Tom Daschle (D-S.Dak.) and Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), two of the nation's foremost advocates for health care, proves that the next generation of America's physicians care about their future patients."

In a letter to President Clinton last November, AMSA committed itself to the 'Patients' Bill of Rights:' "Medical students must have a voice in the way that medicine will be delivered. Today's generation of physicians has allowed managed care to walk all over their patients; the doctors of tomorrow want to help shape the system to make it work for both doctors and, more importantly, their patients."

The best patient protection Congress could offer Americans is comprehensive health care reform. While a 'Patients Bill of Rights' will improve care, it is only a "Band-Aid" solution to a much larger problem. AMSA strongly supports universal national health insurance as the only solution to our nation's health care crisis. A recent study commissioned by the Massachusetts Medical Society concluded that such a system would save the state of Massachusetts between $170 million and $1 billion a year while extending coverage to hundreds of thousands of uninsured citizens. Legislation to create a national single-payer health care system (HR 1200-the American Health Security Act of 1999) has received support from an extensive coalition of citizen and health professional advocacy groups.

AMSA will celebrate 50 years of developing physician leadership in March 2000, and the organization has dedicated itself to the belief that "Health Care Is a Right." "It is with this strong conviction that we support the Democratic 'Patients' Bill of Rights,'" said Grande. "We look forward to quick action by Congress to help improve the health and well-being of the American people."