AMA Defers to Medical Board Organization That Won't Condemn Licensing FGM Doctors
AMA condemns FGM, but defers to organizations that won't.
When I asked the American Medical Association (AMA) whether physicians who performed genital cutting on children should retain active medical licenses, they referred me to the Federation of State Medical Boards.
As I reported on June 1, FSMB declined to condemn genital cutting on children.
On May 27, I sent the AMA seven questions about the licensing outcome for Dr. Jumana Nagarwala and Dr. Fakhruddin Attar, federally indicted in 2017 for performing genital cutting on minor girls. Both hold active, unrestricted Michigan medical licenses. Michigan’s licensing agency closed its investigations into both physicians with no disciplinary action.
R.J. Mills of AMA Media & Editorial responded the next day. He answered none of the seven questions. He said the AMA “does not have an authorized role in the regulatory process run by the State of Michigan” and referred me to FSMB as “the national voice of the state-run regulatory system for medicine.”
Mills opened his response with: “While I am not an AMA spokesperson, I can provide the following background information to help inform your reporting.” He was writing from the AMA’s own Media & Editorial department.
His response included one substantive statement: “The AMA condemns the practice of female genital mutilation and opposes this form of child abuse by any physician in the United States.”
The organization the AMA endorsed as the authority on physician licensing will not say whether genital cutting on children should cost a doctor their license.
On June 1, I followed up with the AMA. I removed all questions about Michigan’s regulatory process and asked only about AMA policy: Does the AMA agree with FSMB’s decision not to condemn genital cutting on children? Should a physician who has performed genital cutting on children retain a license? Does the AMA Code of Medical Ethics address this? Do physicians have an ethical obligation to report colleagues?
I asked whether the AMA has an on-the-record position on these questions.
As of June 6, the AMA has not responded.
Female genital cutting on children is a federal crime under the STOP FGM Act of 2020 and is illegal in most states, including Michigan.
Screenshots of our emails can be found below:
This is an ongoing investigation. If you’d like to support this work, you can contribute here: Expose Medical Board for Licensing an FGM Doctor