Candidate for election at 2025 Annual Meeting: Madelyn E. Butler, MD

Elections will be held at the Annual Meeting of the House of Delegates on June 10, 2025.

Officers and five councils are elected by the American Medical Association House of Delegates (HOD) at the Annual Meeting. The elections are conducted during a special election session under the supervision of the Committee on Rules and Credentials and the chief teller, who are appointed by the speakers. The speaker and vice speaker are responsible for overall administration of the elections. Voting is conducted by secret ballot.

2025-2029

Medicare payment reform is one of the American Medical Association’s highest priorities and an issue I feel strongly about. In 2023, our Florida delegation helped to spearhead a resolution calling on the AMA to increase awareness and advocacy efforts regarding Medicare payment reform. I remain steadfast in my commitment to Medicare payment reform. 

When adjusted for inflation, Medicare physician payment rates have declined 33 percent over the last 20 years. Patients’ access to care—and the quality of care—are in grave danger. In February, I joined hundreds of my fellow AMA members on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. and lobbied on behalf of physicians and patients. The recently introduced bipartisan bill H.R. 879 is a step in the right direction, but we are far from the finish line. Since launching the “Fix Medicare Now” campaign, over 549,000 contacts to Congress have been made. More states are getting involved at the grassroots level and I am proud to stand with physicians as we move this forward. This is an absolute necessity. The current path is unsustainable, and the lives of our patients are hanging in the balance. 

During the 2023 legislative session in my home state of Florida, the FMA secured the most significant payment increase for the state’s physicians in over a decade: $76 million to raise reimbursement rates to, at a minimum, the Medicare level for physicians who provide care to Medicaid patients under the age of 21, effective Oct. 1, 2023. In 2024, the FMA secured an additional $40 million for a total of $116 million to increase reimbursement rates. In order to continue increasing access to high-quality care, the FMA is working to expand the rate increase to include physicians who render medically necessary services to any Medicaid recipient, regardless of age. We will fix Medicare now!

Prior authorization is a barrier that, once again, puts our patients’ lives at risk. The stats are staggering: Among physicians who took part in an AMA survey, 24 percent reported that prior authorization has led to a serious adverse event for a patient under their care, and 19 percent said that prior authorization has led to a patient’s hospitalization. Further, 13 percent of physicians surveyed reported that prior authorization has led to a life-threatening event or required intervention to prevent permanent impairment or damage. Seven percent of physicians reported that prior authorization has led to a patient’s disability, permanent bodily damage, a congenital anomaly, a birth defect or even death, and 78 percent said that patients abandon treatment due to prior authorization struggles with health insurers. 

During my tenure on the AMA Board of Trustees, the AMA’s “FixPriorAuth.org” grassroots campaign has generated positive movement. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released final regulations making important prior authorization reforms to cut patient care delays and electronically streamline the process for physicians. Individual states are passing legislation to ease the burden of prior authorization, and the AMA is proud to support these efforts. 

Unfortunately, prior authorization remains a leading contributor to physician burnout, with 95 percent of physicians reporting that this practice somewhat or significantly increases clinician burnout. In a statement to Congress, the AMA pointed out that physician burnout is a significant factor in the closure of private medical practices across the country. Administrative burdens and the high demands of clinical care have led to chronic stress for many physicians, which impacts the quality of patient care and the financial viability of medical practices. More physicians are opting to retire early, reduce their hours, or leave medical practice entirely. These trends inevitably disrupt patient care and exacerbate health care access issues. I refuse to accept the harm being done to our colleagues and our shared profession as an inevitability. These egregious administrative burdens are causing medicine to splinter and forcing physicians to choose between their well-being and their patients. I am determined to see this fight through to end.

Physician-led care has been proven to provide better outcomes for patients. With 20 times more clinical training than nurse practitioners, physicians are the ONLY ones qualified to lead a patient through their medical care journey. During my tenure on the AMA Board of Trustees, the AMA has worked alongside state and national specialty associations to oppose inappropriate scope expansions in over 40 states. All over the country, physicians are fighting for their rightful place as leader of the health care team, and the AMA puts its money where its mouth is. Since its inception, the AMA has provided more than $4 million in grants through the AMA Scope of Practice Partnership (SOPP). 

There are many practitioner groups seeking to expand their scope of practice. Physician assistants and nurse practitioners want to practice independently. Pharmacists want to treat and diagnose. Naturopaths want to prescribe legend drugs and, in some cases, perform surgical procedures. Optometrists want to perform surgery. Nurse anesthetists want to provide anesthesia services without physician supervision. Psychologists want to prescribe medications, many of which contain black box labels. The fact is that patients value physicians, with 91 percent saying a physician’s education and training are vital for optimal care. Additionally, 75 percent of patients say they would wait longer and pay more to be treated by a physician, and 95 percent say it’s important for a physician to be involved in their diagnosis and treatment. I strongly support physician-led care. I believe that nothing is more important than the safety of our patients, and I will not stand for our profession to be devalued while less qualified individuals attempt to do the job that only we, as physicians, are educated and trained to do.

• Visit the AMA elections page for information on other candidates running for office.
• Find up to date information for the June Annual Meeting of the HOD.