A new year brings new hope and new challenges. 2025 was definitely a challenging year in medicine, however, I am very proud of the work our academy was able to accomplish. In 2026, we have even more ambitious goals.
We recently updated our strategic plan, under the guidance of our President-Elect Dr. Gattu Pani Rao. This included specific objectives under each of our three Pillars:
Our Education committee has been hard at work in putting together a great CME program at our upcoming Winter Refresher (2/27/26-3/1/26). This is the largest CME and networking event in Maryland that is specifically designed for family physicians. We hope to see you there!
Advocacy is an important aspect of our academy. As part of our state advocacy efforts, we are very focused on the 2026 Maryland Legislative session which started earlier this month and will go to Mid-April. Our advocacy efforts will include preventing Naturopaths from prescribing medications (including controlled substances), keeping Medicaid physician payments stable, preventing increases in Medical Malpractice caps, and supporting continued funding of the Loan Assistance Repayment Program and the Preceptor Tax Credit. We would love your support on these and other issues on our Advocacy Day on February 12th, 2026.
As my role as president of MDAFP comes to an end in February, I am planning on continuing my passion for advocacy. I was recently appointed as a board member of FamMedPAC, which is AAFP’s Political Action Committee. In this role I will be supporting FamMedPAC’s goal to help elect congressional candidates who support the AAFP’s legislative goals and objectives.
Our 2026 is full of exciting work. I hope you have a wonderful 2026 and thank you for your continued support of our Academy.
Sincerely,
Amar Duggirala, DO, MPH, FAAFP
Your MDAFP President
