Primary care leadership in the public policy arena

Summ. article based on a presentation by Senator (Ga) Don R. Thomas, MD at the Fifth Annual Primary Care and Prevention Conference, September 21-23, 2005. This closing session commentary focused on the role primary care providers can take in shaping public policy for health care. As a physician and lawmaker, Dr. Thomas provides living examples of how the two can intertwine for better health care for all populations. He has practiced family medicine in Dalton, Georgia for almost 50 years and is serving his fifth term in the Georgia Senate, representing District 54 in the northwest area of the state.