PALTmed Influences Policy at AMA House of Delegates Meeting

Drs. Karl Steinberg and Leslie Eber were the delegates representing PALTmed at the American Medical Association’s (AMA’s) annual 2026 meeting last week in Chicago.  Of note, PALTmed has had only one delegate and one alternate for the past few years, but was upgraded to two voting delegates for 2026. The AMA meeting was very substantive and concentrated on the use of augmented intelligence (AI), reimbursement, patient access to care, and ensuring our society had access to medical information that is both accurate and scientifically sound. Dr. Steinberg served on Reference Committee D for this meeting and represented PALTmed with distinction and integrity.

As AI is increasingly utilized in medicine, the AMA House of Delegates (HOD) moved to ensure that evidence-based care is integrated in all health AI systems and that transparency remains at the forefront of these efforts. The organization discussed that there also needs to be accountability and human oversight with the use of AI.
The AMA continues to lobby for more equitable and reliable reimbursement plans. They also discussed the dangers of ER boarding of patients and how this can impact access to care. As PALTmed members are well aware, this can be especially harmful to older patients and patients with multiple comorbidities.

The AMA passed Resolution 414, which continues to address changes to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and pursues all appropriate channels to reverse the 2025-2026 changes to ACIP’s structure, membership, and operations. They will also promote scientifically based vaccine policies as stipulated in the original ACIP charter. Moreover, in electing Dr. Sandra Fryhofer as their incoming president-elect, the House of Delegates sent a clear message that a stronger stance is desired regarding the current administration and the anti-science, anti-vaccine policies emanating from the Department of Health & Human Services.

There were three resolutions specifically relevant to PALTC:

• Resolution 225, proffered by the state of Indiana, addressed specialist care within nursing homes, advocating for a requirement that a physician (not an advanced practice practitioner) see residents at least once out of every three visits. This resolution did not address the medical necessity of these specialty visits (which this year calling for creation of guidelines) and has been referred to the AMA board for further evaluation and modification—which was the outcome PALTmed was hoping for, as this is a complex issue.  This resolution was not debated.
• Resolution 706, proffered by the state of New York, was adopted as amended, and states that the AMA should educate physicians as to Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) policy regarding skilled nursing facilities’ (SNF) responsibility to create and timely deliver a comprehensive patient discharge summary to a patient’s outpatient primary care physician (PCP). It advocates that CMS enforce its existing regulations on timely and comprehensive discharge summaries. This resolution aligns with PALTmed Resolution D26, which was passed by the PALTmed HOD as amended and will be reviewed at the PALTmed Board of Directors meeting later this month.
• Resolution 231, proffered by the Senior Physicians Section (which Dr. Steinberg serves on), stated that the AMA should oppose administrative or regulatory actions that exacerbate staffing shortages or threaten access to long-term care when such actions are not accompanied by adequate workforce supply and training, immigration pathways, and funding support (new HOD policy). It also states that the AMA support immigration policies that protect, retain, and expand the long-term care workforce, including timely work authorization, efficient visa processing, and protections against abrupt workforce disruptions for immigrant health care workers. Dr. Eber testified passionately in favor of this resolution both at Reference Committee B and on the House floor. Although the RefCom had recommended reaffirmation rather than passage of 231, the testimony of Dr. Eber and others (including the American Geriatrics Society delegate) was compelling, and this resolution—which is in line with PALTmed policy—passed with strong support on the House floor and is now new AMA policy.

The HOD also addressed nutritional issues, including the notion of “Food is Medicine” and the health risks of ultra-processed foods.  Prior authorization and expanding telehealth flexibilities, a perennial issue in PALTC, were also discussed with a new policy forthcoming.  

PALTmed’s physician members are encouraged to join the AMA to expand our voice within organized medicine—and to be sure to designate PALTmed as your primary organizational affiliation.  This ensures that PALTmed will continue to have a seat at this important table.