AMA State Advocacy Summit inspires action for 2026
As the AMA State Advocacy Summit concluded last week and many states kick off their legislative sessions this month, one thing became clear: physician leaders are energized and well prepared to effect change on crucial health care issues this year.
A highlight of the summit was robust discussion around the “Your Care is at Our Core” campaign, which emphasizes the central role of the physician-patient relationship in rebuilding trust in medicine and underpins advocacy efforts.
Key discussions included:
Innovation, AI and the future of patient care
State policy and politics: A view from the statehouse
AI and state policymakers: Opportunities for meaningful progress
State implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act
Trust, influence and impact: Legislators’ perspectives
State advocacy for physician wellness
Sounding the alarm on nurse practitioner and physician assistant specialty practice
The new corporate practice of medicine doctrine
Practical solutions for states to advocate for individuals with a substance use disorder or mental illness
State health insurance reforms and ERISA preemption
Protecting access to vaccines: State policy trends and challenges
For a comprehensive overview of the summit and speaker lineup, explore the full agenda (PDF).
See highlights from the meeting and connect with fellow advocates by following #StateAdvocacySummit on social media.
Mark your calendars—the next AMA State Advocacy Summit is Jan. 7-9, 2027, at the Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA. Stay tuned for more details.
New ARC issue briefs reveal findings from survey of nurse practitioners and physician assistants
A new series of issue briefs from the AMA’s Advocacy Resource Center highlights key findings from recent national surveys of 502 nurse practitioners and 500 physician assistants. The data provide important findings for policy which can be helpful as the 2026 legislative sessions are underway.
The first two briefs focus on nurse practitioner (PDF) and physician assistant (PDF) attitudes on physician-led care and reveal that an overwhelming majority of nurse practitioners (95%) and all surveyed physician assistants (100%) practice as part of a physician-led team, with both groups expressing high satisfaction in this model. Nurse practitioners and physician assistants both appreciate and value these relationships, citing physician mentorship, collaboration on complex and routine cases and patient safety as key benefits to working as part of a physician-led team.
The second set of issue briefs addresses specialty switching—the movement of nurse practitioners (PDF) and physician assistants (PDF) between different clinical specialties during their career. Data from the survey found that 35% of nurse practitioners and 42% of physician assistants have switched specialties at least once during their career, typically without any formal training or certification in the respective specialty. Rather, both groups reported robust reliance on physicians for on-the-job education and training when transitioning to new specialties.
These findings reaffirm the critical importance of physician-led care and state laws that maintain physician supervision and collaboration of nurse practitioners and physician assistants. These laws are vital to ensuring the highest standards of patient safety and quality care that patients expect and deserve. As the 2026 state legislative sessions begin, these findings provide timely evidence to support physician-led, team-based care.
