Stand by What is Proved December 3, 2025 From the President Stand by What Is Proved Clifford Wong, MD, ACCMA President It is my honor and privilege to serve as your ACCMA President in the coming year and sustain our Association’s mission: to improve the practice of medicine for the benefit of our patients and the public’s health. Now more than ever, we must be guided by this purpose. None of us can fully foresee the challenges that lie ahead. A few years ago, could any of us have imagined leading through a global pandemic? And today, could we have imagined the upheaval now threatening our health care system – the erosion of our public safety net, and the growing distrust of evidence-based medical practice? This past Independence Day, our nation received quite the birthday gift in the form of H.R. 1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but from a health care perspective, this one is aesthetically challenged. The bill enacts deep cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act – over $1.2 trillion in total – and is the largest rollback of federal health care funding in American history. Ten million people are expected to lose coverage within a decade, including 2.5 million Californians who will lose Medi-Cal and nearly 2 million whose premiums are expected to double. Compounding these challenges, we find ourselves on the defensive against an unexpected and insidious attack on science. As physicians, we are witnessing the dismantling of our public health infrastructure, research funding cuts, and the replacement of scientific experts with political appointees. Long-settled guidance on vaccines, pasteurization, even Tylenol is being questioned. Are we about to enter a “Scientific Devolution”? Not if we can help it. The ACCMA will continue to defend evidence-based medicine, advocate for health care access – including reproductive and gender-affirming care – and protect vulnerable populations. We will also continue fighting for prior authorization reform, fair reimbursement, telemedicine permanency, and full implementation of the voter-approved Proposition 35 funding. This is a critical moment to pay attention, to use our voices to counter misinformation, and to model reason, logic, and faith in science. Galileo once wrote, “It is surely harmful to souls to make it a heresy to believe what is proved.” Stand by what is proved – and be proud to represent our profession.