CHICAGO — The American Medical Association (AMA), the nation's largest physician organization, today announced the election of Blake E. Murphy to its Board of Trustees. She will assume office at the conclusion of the AMA’s Annual Meeting in June 2020.

Murphy is a third-year medical student at the Stritch School of Medicine at Loyola University in Chicago.  She is expected to complete medical school by May 2021.

“I am deeply honored be elected to the Board of Trustees of the AMA, which has been a relentless advocate for patients and physicians for more than 170 years,” said Murphy. “As a member of the Board of Trustees, I look forward to representing the medical student voice, particularly at this critical moment when the AMA is building its Center for Health Equity.”

Recently, Murphy interned with the AMA Center for Health Equity. In her role, she worked to develop infrastructure and strategy for implementation of policy related to health equity. Previously, Murphy was an AMA Government Relations Advocacy Fellow, a role in which she planned a weeklong grassroots advocacy campaign in support of DACA students, worked to increase access to medication-assisted treatment for substance use disorder and advocated for lower drug prices.

Murphy also served as advocacy chair for the AMA Medical Student Section (MSS) and was a member of the MSS House of Delegates Coordination Committee. During her time in the MSS, Murphy comprehensively reviewed AMA policy while advancing the interests of medical students across the country.

Murphy was also a member of the Illinois State Medical Society (ISMS), where she sat on the Council on Membership and Advocacy. She collaborated with the ISMS to determine retention and membership expansion strategies for physicians and students.

A Chicago native, Murphy is an alumnus of Northwestern University, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology in 2013.