The American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates (HoD) is the principal policy-making body of the AMA. Voting seats are apportioned according to the number of AMA members within that society. The AUA currently holds 2 full physician seats within the AMA HoD. The HoD meets twice yearly to discuss and debate issues related to health care. The policies discussed shape the advocacy agenda for the AMA and inform the actions of its leadership. The AMA lobbying team is mandated to pursue the issues stated in its policy agenda. The AUA’s involvement in the AMA HoD is one major way in which we advance urology’s legislative and advocacy priorities. Our ability to advance urology-specific issues is directly related to the number of urologists in the HoD. We need your help to make our voice stronger. Joining or renewing your AMA membership allows urology to take full advantage of the AUA’s participation in the House of Medicine, working collaboratively with physicians from all states and specialties to advance health care for all of our patients.

This past June in Chicago, the AMA HoD convened its first in-person meeting since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Lead delegate Dr. Hans Arora, alongside Drs. Jason Jameson and Ruchika Talwar, reviewed over 300 items of business dealing with issues related to a plethora of issues pertaining to health care in America. Some items of interest to the practice of urology included

• Encouraging shared decision making in the treatment of gender-diverse individuals and promoting informed consent, personal autonomy, and increased access to gender-affirming treatments
• Encouraging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to improve the development and testing process for drugs in the pediatric age groups in which they are used in order to promote pharmaceutical equity
• Working with TRICARE to cover gamete preservation for active duty and activated reservist military personnel
• Opposing bundling of physician payments with hospital payments unless such an arrangement has been agreed to in advance
• Continuing to push for reform of the Medicare Appropriate Use Criteria Program in order to minimize clinicians’ administrative burden and practice expenses while maximizing alignment with the Quality Payment Program
• Supporting coverage of nonclinical ancillary costs by sponsors of clinical trials
• Developing a comprehensive advocacy campaign to achieve enactment of reforms to the Medicare Physician Payment System consistent with existing AMA policy
• Improving access to and insurance coverage for fertility preservation and infertility treatment for residents and fellows

At this meeting, the HoD mourned the loss of urologist Dr. William Monnig, and AUA delegates also said goodbye to 2 members of the team: Dr. Terry Grimm, who retired his role as our delegation chair last year, and Kathy Shanley, PhD, Executive Vice President of Public Policy and Advocacy at the AUA, who has been attending these meetings for almost 2 decades. Their leadership, wisdom, and guidance will be missed, but we will forever count them as colleagues and friends.