Your Care Is at Our Core
June 12, 2026
In partnership with the American Medical Association (AMA), the OMA has joined more than 30 states in a campaign to strengthen America’s relationship with physicians and highlight the importance of the physician-patient relationship for quality patient care.
Physicians are compassionate healers and their patients’ strongest allies. They persevered through years of medical school and residency to build connections with, treat, and heal their patients. Every day, they and their teams aim to provide the highest quality of care — it’s what all those hours and all of that training prepared them for. This is their calling; what drives them every day.
The best days for physicians and PAs come when they are close at hand with their patients, facing challenges head on and providing support to patients in their journey to good health.
Physicians Are Patients’ Strongest Allies in Health
Yet in recent years, physicians have faced reputational challenges brought on by broader frustrations within healthcare. Americans want to see more of their physicians — 89% of national voters agree that the doctor-patient relationship is central to health care — yet too often, the system gets in the way. Now more than ever, physicians find themselves stuck between a desire to connect with patients and a need to navigate seemingly endless red tape and bureaucracy.
The OMA Champions the Patient-Physician Relationship
Your Care Is at Our Core was created to elevate the message of what drives physicians: trust, empathy, compassion, and time caring and fighting for their patients — emphasizing that their personal relationship to their patients is a priority and a commitment to their care. "In my practice, I see patients working hard to navigate a system that is increasingly difficult to access,” said OMA President Brian Duty, MD, MBA, professor of Urologic Surgery, OHSU Health. "Many are turning to AI and other sources for answers, which can help but also introduce new challenges. Layered on top of that is a more polarized environment that affects how patients approach care. Patients are not to blame. Our responsibility as physicians and PAs is to meet them where they are, communicate clearly, and help guide them through complex decisions. ‘Your Care Is at Our Core’ reflects that commitment.”
OMA’s Annual Conference
Joining Your Care Is at Our Core dovetails with Session 1 of our virtual annual conference, Rebuilding Trust in Medicine: Practical Strategies for Oregon Clinicians in a Fractured Era. Moderated by Dr. Duty, the June 24 session will bring together diverse perspectives — including clinical practice, rural health, public health, and social science — to explore how trust in medicine is evolving and what it means for patient care today. Panelists will share practical strategies clinicians can use to strengthen trust in the exam room, communicate more effectively in the face of uncertainty and misinformation, and navigate system challenges transparently.
Key Issues
Oregon clinicians spend too much time fighting insurance red tape instead of caring for patients. Prior authorization delays force patients to wait for treatments their doctor has already determined they need — and more than 1 in 4 physicians say those delays have led to a serious adverse event for a patient in their care. Credentialing bottlenecks keep qualified clinicians from seeing patients for months. And when claims are processed — increasingly by AI-driven systems — clinicians and patients deserve transparency about how those decisions are made. The OMA is fighting to cut the administrative burden so physicians can do what they trained to do: care for patients.
Clinicians at the Center of Care: CPOM Reform
Oregon made history by passing landmark Corporate Practice of Medicine legislation — a common-sense protection ensuring that treatment decisions stay with clinicians, not corporations. But the work isn't done. The OMA is pushing to close remaining gaps, extend those protections to hospital systems, and put real enforcement teeth into the law. When corporate interests are allowed to override clinical judgment, patients pay the price.
Medicaid: Clinicians in the Room When It Matters
Federal law is reshaping Medicaid in ways that will directly impact Oregon patients and the clinicians who care for them. Oregon's Medicaid program is a lifeline for hundreds of thousands of residents, and any changes to eligibility, funding, or structure must be made with clinicians at the table. OMA members see every day what their Medicaid patients need. As Oregon navigates this shifting landscape, the OMA is committed to ensuring clinician voices shape the decisions ahead.
Join Us
Join us in pushing back against the bureaucratic red tape of healthcare and advocating for what matters most — time to treat and care for patients, to be their patients’ strongest ally, and to give both personal and physical attention to their patients.