Our Mission And History

The Medical Society of the District of Columbia (MSDC) is part of the federation of state, county and specialty medical societies which constitute the American Medical Association. MSDC has over 2,400 physician and medical student members, mostly from the District of Columbia and surrounding counties.

MSDC was founded in 1817 and chartered by an Act of Congress in 1819.

From the Medical Society's earliest days, it has been a major player involved in the health of Washington DC’s residents:

In the early 1900s, the Medical Society was active in the improvement of the District’s water supply and the control of contagious diseases;
in the 1960s the Medical Society worked to eliminate polio and to improve standards for the licensing of nursing homes;
in the 1990s the Medical Society worked in support of anti-smoking legislation and bills aimed at providing health care to the District’s uninsured, spearheaded a major city-wide campaign to vaccinate infants and children, and created an AIDS Task Force,

MSDC continues to advocate for physicians and patients: leading legislative efforts to protect physicians and patients from some of the onerous practices of managed care organizations; pursuing legislation for tort reform and collective bargaining; helping physicians make informed practice management decisions and contracts. MSDC maintains high standards of medicine through peer review activities focusing on ethics and physician health. MSDC publishes a monthly newsletter MSDC Newsline, which features timely news about the Society and the local medical marketplace. Report on Medical Economics, published monthly, provides current information on changes in policies and regulations of third party payors, including Medicaid and Medicare.

MISSION & GOALS

Mission:

The Medical Society of the District of Columbia is dedicated to the well being of physicians in metropolitan Washington and their patients. We advocate on behalf of our member physicians of diverse cultural and ethic backgrounds; we promote high standards of character and professionalism; and we ensure that physicians are and are recognized as the primary professionals who define and guarantee high quality, appropriate, and cost effective medical care. Above all, we aggressively defend the highest principle of all: the integrity of the physician-patient relationship.

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Goals:

To foster high quality, appropriate and cost effective medical care in metropolitan Washington.

To increase practice efficiency, practice satisfaction, and expand physician support services.

To ensure that MSDC is a dynamic association which is responsive to its members and fiscally sound.

Councils & Committees

Councils

Health Care Finance Council

Quality Improvement Council

Public Health & Communication Council

Committees

Continuing Medical Education

Emergency Preparedness

Finance

Legislation

Physician Health

Professional Standards

Task Forces

Family Violence

Information Technology

Tuberculosis

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