TUCSON, Ariz., Dec. 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As we are approaching the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, George L. Smith, III, M.D., reflects on the independence of physicians in the winter issue of the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons. Dr. Smith, current president of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS), practices family medicine in Covington, Ga.
When Dr. Smith, as a high school student in the late 1960s, accompanied his father to the hospital, there was true medical freedom. His father came to the emergency room to admit a heart-attack patient. When the patient’s wife indicated that she would like to have him treated by a cardiologist, Dr. Smith arranged the transfer to another hospital with a phone call.
“There were no cumbersome prior authorization requirements, no quality review personnel to call, no insurance company’s permission to obtain, and certainly no wallet biopsy to perform! There were just two physicians reaching an agreement about the needs of a patient,” Dr. Smith writes. From this incident, he learned the importance of listening to the patient’s family.
In January 1776, Thomas Paine wrote his “Common Sense” political tract and 11 months later wrote “The American Crisis,” which began with, “These are the times which try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country.” Dr. Smith writes that we are again close to such a time.
All 56 signers of the Declaration knew that they were traitors to the British crown and could face execution. Most paid a very heavy price.
“Would you have signed the Declaration of Independence?” Dr. Smith asks. “Or have you already signed a Declaration of Dependence?”
As government becomes ever more intrusive, physicians in AAPS are striving to preserve the practice of private medicine.
The Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons is published by the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS), a national organization representing physicians in all specialties since 1943.
Contact: George L. Smith, III, at gsds74@icloud.com or Jane M. Orient, M.D., (520) 323-3110, janeorientmd@gmail.com
