Medical Licensing and Discipline in America: A History of the Federation of State Medical Boards by David A. Johnson, Humayun J. Chaudhry (review)

Founded in 1912 from the merger of the National Confederation of State Medical Examining and Licensing Boards and the American Confederation of Reciprocating Examining and Licensing Boards, the Federation of State Medical Boards held its first meeting in 1913. Over the next century this board has played an important but generally underappreciated role in the history of U.S. medicine.

This volume traces the history of the federation from its origins up to almost the present day. Both authors are employed by the board (as president and CEO, and as a vice-president); the volume has a celebratory tone throughout. References are largely taken from a very careful reading of the organization’s records. There is quite a bit of information here, which makes for dense reading at times. A concluding bibliographical essay provides useful guidance to some historical literature.

The federation’s original goal was to set standards for medical licensure, and to do so they had to grapple with the challenges of both shifting educational standards and consistency of interstate licensure in a rapidly changing system of physician practice regulation. After a period of relative inaction from the early 1930s until the early 1950s, the federation gained new energy from initiatives designed to produce a model Medical Practice Act and the creation (in 1956) of the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG). The federation continues to play an important role in the world of medical regulation, serving as the major centralized source of information for both verifying physician credentials and documenting physician disciplinary sanctions.

One of most important changes to physician regulation over the past century has been the decision to place a time limit on specialty certification. The federation is now engaged in discussions about what processes ought to be mandated for maintenance of physician licensure. Historians of medicine who wish to engage with the past century of licensing regulation will find this a useful volume.