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 4–5, 2027, in Washington, gives medical students a remarkable opportunity to advocate for the future of medicine by:
- Attending training sessions on how to be an effective healthcare advocate.
- Learning about issues affecting medical students.
- Meeting with their local legislators on Capitol Hill.
Learn more and register now for the 2027 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
In addition to building your professional network by connecting with hundreds of medical students, MAC allows medical students to meet face to face with members of Congress and their staffers.
Jackie Liu is the 2026–2027 AMA Government Relations Advocacy Fellow (GRAF) and a fourth-year medical student training in Boston. Liu, who uses she/they pronouns, said that the event gives medical students the chance to have substantive policy conversations with members of Congress and their staffers.
When attending the MAC event last March, Liu—a resident of Maryland, was part of a delegation that spoke with Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) about issues such as increasing funding to National Institutes of Health (NIH).
“It was a really unique opportunity to talk to somebody who was so well versed in that area, was really passionate about it, and then also convey my own stories,” Liu said.
Visit AMA Advocacy in Action to learn about the advocacy priorities the AMA is actively working on.
Grow as an advocate
Ahead of visits with the nation’s lawmakers, the AMA Medical Student Advocacy Conference will feature sessions that help hone their ability to advocate and lobby effectively.
Liu said MAC is especially valuable because it gives busy medical students dedicated time to understand policy issues, hear from experts and translate what they are learning into effective advocacy.
Many medical students arrive at MAC with little experience in public health policy and leave with a real skill set.
“You don’t need any experience to attend, because we do all of the training for you,” Liu said.
“Our hope is that you take those skills and then bring them to future meetings with your legislators or you bring them to your statehouse.”
Target key issues
As has been the case in previous versions of the event, medical students attending the 2027 AMA Medical Student Advocacy Conference will have a few key issues on their radar.
Medical students will be advocating for physicians, patients and their communities by focusing on issues that impact key arenas of the healthcare landscape. In the past, these advocacy efforts have focused on areas such as medical education, improving outcomes and making the delivery of care more efficient.
As part of the training, medical students are armed with education and policy briefs that help them improve their knowledge in an effort to effectively lobby.
The system needs fixing
The challenges facing healthcare’s future make advocacy less of an optional endeavor, Liu said.
“Advocacy is becoming a greater part of our careers, both for our individual patients and for the practice of healthcare as a whole,” Liu said.
Liu said medical students bring both credibility and lived experience to policy conversations, making their participation especially important.
“Medical students need a seat in the table,” Liu said. “As trainees we are experiencing and witnessing things like the stress placed on the physician workforce. We see burnout firsthand.”
As the leader in physician well-being, the AMA provides organizational solutions that help physicians and health systems optimize practice efficiency, reduce burnout, and rediscover the Joy in Medicine®.
