Today, the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), and American College of Physicians (ACP) issued a set of Joint Principles Protecting the Patient-Physician Relationship: Keeping External Interference Out of the Practice of Medicine.

Our organizations, which represent more than 400,000 physicians and medical students, call on policymakers to join us in preserving the patient-physician relationship by ensuring that the practice of medicine is not unduly impeded by government interference. A growing number of policy proposals aim to interfere in the practice of medicine and threaten access to evidence-based care.

Critical to achieving this goal is respect for the importance of scientific evidence, patient autonomy, and the patient-physician relationship. Our organizations have adopted these principles, which are designed to ensure our patients have continued access to coverage and medically accurate, evidence-based care.