Medical students will, by definition, shape the future of medicine. The upcoming AMA Medical Student Advocacy Conference (MAC) is a venue in which they can amplify their collective voice and create a brighter tomorrow for physicians and patients.
The conference offers physicians-in-training the opportunity to improve their skills as advocates before they start practicing medicine as well as the unique opportunity to meet face to face with members of Congress and their staffers to advocate on issues directly affecting physicians and patients.
The conference, which takes place March 6–7 in Washington, gives medical students a remarkable opportunity to advocate for the future of medicine by:
- Attending training on how to be a public health advocate.
- Learning about issues affecting medical students and the practice of medicine.
- Meeting with their local legislators on Capitol Hill.
Learn more and register now for the 2025 AMA Medical Student Advocacy Conference.
Here are four other big reasons why medical students should head to Washington to attend the conference.
Face time and networking
The in-person event allows medical students to meet face to face with members of Congress and their staffers.
Formerly the AMA Government Relations Advocacy Fellow, Jessica McAllister has attended the conference four times.
“Meeting with your Members of Congress during MAC is a great way for students to start building those relationships with their lawmakers to further their future advocacy,” said McAllister, a medical student in Washington.
McCallister added that “MAC serves as a great opportunity for medical students who are passionate about advocacy and public health to come together and foster meaningful relationships with other like-minded medical students.”
Dive deeper:
- How to boost your medical student leadership skill set
- Why medical students should get involved in local advocacy
- Tips to find enriching medical student leadership opportunities
- 3 keys for medical student advocates on Capitol Hill
Grow as an advocate
Ahead of medial students’ visits with the nation’s lawmakers, the AMA Medical Student Advocacy Conference will feature sessions that help the students advocate and lobby effectively.
Kylee Borger—has attended the conference. several times—in-person in March 2020, just before the global pandemic forced the 2021 and 2022 events to go virtual. The event will be held in person in Washington for the third consecutive year in 2025.
“Attending MAC helps you grow as an advocate by giving you the tools on what to say and how to say it to be the most effective when you meet with your representatives,” said Borger, who was the AMA Government Relations Advocacy Fellow for the 2022–2023 term and is now an emergency medicine resident physician.
Some key tips for those interactions with lawmakers (PDF) include understanding where your expertise as an advocate lies and seeking guidance from physicians who have worked as physician lobbyists.
Dive deeper:
- The AMA enables medical students to grow as advocates—here’s how
- Looking to find time for medical student advocacy? Here’s how
- 5 tips for medical students looking to get an op-ed published
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Target key issues
As has been the case in previous versions of the event, medical students attending the 2025 AMA Medical Student Advocacy Conference will have a few key issues on their radar.
Students will be advocating for physicians, patients and their communities. In the past advocacy topics have included graduate medical education, Medicare reform, cost-sharing and substance-use disorder.
These examples of the policy briefs from the 2024 event helped medical students have the facts at their fingertips when advocating on behalf of patients and physicians:
- Lowering prescription drug costs (PDF).
- Increasing access to treatment for substance use disorder (PDF).
- Addressing physician workforce shortages with bipartisan GME legislation (PDF).
The system needs fixing
The challenges facing health care’s future make advocacy less of an optional endeavor, according to Borger.
“Students should attend MAC because advocacy is essential to improving patient care and access,” Borger said. “If we do not incorporate advocacy into our medical practice, as medical students and as future physicians, we can only work within the broken health care system as it exists—and are ignoring the possibility of fixing it to improve patient access, health care affordability, health equity and limitless facets of the art and science of medicine.”
Learn how the AMA’s advocacy network and training can turn your passions into health policy. Connect with nearly 52,000 AMA student members as you get hands-on experience advocating for change at the state and federal levels through trainings, meetings and events in Washington, D.C.—and online.
