Membership
More than ever, the future of medicine depends on physicians
coming together—uniting—to achieve common
goals.
The San Francisco Medical Society aims to serve as an
organization that brings together physicians of all specialties to
advance the health of our patients and of the community. The SFMS
and the CMA are always working to keep the practice and decisions of
medicine in the hands of physicians, to unite the local medical
community, and to offer support to both physicians and patients.
Your voice is key. Our organization is only as strong as our
membership base. Join together with your fellow physicians and
participate in shaping the future of medicine.
In addition to the personal and professional rewards that come from
participating in our community, medical society membership offers a
number of other benefits, such as special services, discounts, and
resources.
Click here to see a full list of benefits that come
with your membership to the SFMS and CMA.
Our membership department is available to answer questions you have
about our organization, about membership, or to get your application
started. Call Therese Porter at (415) 561-0850 extension 268 or email tporter@sfms.org. You may also join
online by clicking here.
Past Victories of Organized Medicine
MICRA—An excellent example organized medicine
at work in California is the preservation of MICRA (the Medical Injury
Compensation Reform Act of 1975), our model malpractice and professional
liability law. MICRA keeps malpractice insurance rates stable and
predictable and ensures that truly injured patients get taken care of
appropriately. Every medical specialty and hospital saves large amounts
on medical liability premiums due to this law, which was established by
the CMA and is under continual attack by trial attorneys.
Tobacco—The SFMS was at the forefront in the
successful effort to restrict smoking in local eateries, and we continue
to advocate for stronger protections from secondhand smoke for the
public and employees locally and beyond.
Healthy San Francisco—SFMS representatives served
on the mayoral panel that designed this unique "universal health"
program, and we have joined in legal advocacy to keep the program intact
and accessible to all San Francisco residents.
San Francisco General Hospital rebuild—The SFMS
spoke out forcefully for the public bond that is financing the crucial
rebuild of our public hospital to conform with modern seismic standards,
and members served on the mayoral panel that determined where the
hospital is to be rebuilt.
Environmental health—The SFMS hosted a landmark
conference on toxics and other environmental threats to health, and it
continues to work closely with the Collaborative on Health and the
Environment, the international network established at that meeting.
HIV policy—The SFMS has been active since the
beginning of the AIDS epidemic in advocating for sound policy at local,
state, and national levels on contentious issues such as HIV reporting
and tracking, syringe exchange programs, hospital infection control, and
more.
Reproductive health advocacy—SFMS representatives
have been important advocates for access to reproductive health
services, including medical abortion and sound reproductive health
education.
Drug policy—The SFMS has presented landmark
conferences on issues of pain medication policy, medical use of
cannabis, drug prohibition, and more.
Words from Our Members
“I have long been a proud SFMS member because the SFMS has been
a staunch advocate and supporter of SFGH and public health in general,
including pushing influential legislation such as partner testing,
funding for AIDS care and prevention, the ban of tobacco at pharmacies,
and more.”—Mitch Katz, MD, SF Director of
Health
“I was an SFMS member for almost fifty years until I retired, and
I always saw the group as an important and often progressive voice in
organized medicine on many crucial
issues.”—Philip R. Lee, MD; Chancellor Emeritus,
UCSF; former United States Assistant Secretary of Health; and Chairman
Emeritus, San Francisco Health Commission
"The SFMS helped save the Haight clinic from the start, and
I’ve been a loyal member ever since. So much of state and national
impact has come from here, and the SFMS has helped in many
ways."—David Smith, MD, founder, Haight-Ashbury Free
Medical Clinics
For more information about membership, contact Therese
Porter, Director of Membership Services at (415) 561-0850, extension
268, or tporter@sfms.org
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San Francisco Medical Society
