WASHINGTON — The American Medical Association (AMA) presented Josh Shapiro, attorney general for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, with the Dr. Nathan Davis Award for Outstanding Government Service. Shapiro was selected for the AMA’s top government service award for his commitment to public service in Montgomery County, Penn., and for his work to rein in the opioid crisis.
As attorney general, Shapiro has concentrated on increasing resources to pursue high-level drug dealers, collaborating with law enforcement agencies at local, state and federal levels to improve enforcement efforts, and leading a multi-state investigation with 41 other attorneys general to look at the role that opioid manufacturers and distributors play in the epidemic.
He has also taken a public health approach to the crisis by working with leading medical experts to develop a plan that reduces the number of unnecessary opioid prescriptions. He currently leads a coalition of 36 attorneys general in “The Road to Recovery Act,” which aims to increase accessibility and affordability to treatment for those with substance abuse disorder.
“During the past 20 years of his career in public service, Attorney General Shapiro has developed a strong rapport with physicians in Montgomery County and leveraged those relationships to address one of the largest public health crises of our time,” said AMA Board Chair Gerald E. Harmon, M.D. “As attorney general, he regularly seeks input from health care providers and includes health-related issues among his list of priorities.”
Shapiro was one of six honorees chosen this year to receive the Dr. Nathan Davis Award for Outstanding Government Service. The award, named after the founding father of the AMA, recognizes elected and career officials in federal, state or municipal service whose outstanding contributions have promoted the art and science of medicine and the betterment of public health.
Shapiro is a graduate of the University of Rochester. The AMA presented him the Dr. Nathan Davis Award last night at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. as part of the AMA’s National Advocacy Conference.
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About the American Medical Association
The American Medical Association is the physicians’ powerful ally in patient care. As the only medical association that convenes 190+ state and specialty medical societies and other critical stakeholders, the AMA represents physicians with a unified voice to all key players in health care. The AMA leverages its strength by removing the obstacles that interfere with patient care, leading the charge to prevent chronic disease and confront public health crises and, driving the future of medicine to tackle the biggest challenges in health care.
