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Since 1960, nearly 50 doctors have traded in their white coats for the suit jackets required in the halls of Congress. And there’s been one remarkable constant: The doctors-turned-legislators in those blazers have been overwhelmingly male and overwhelmingly Republican. Just a handful were Democrats and only two were women. None were both. This year, Dr. Ramsey Ellis, a progressive hand surgeon from the Chicago suburbs, is working to change that. She’s throwing the support of a private group of more than 8,000 Democratic female doctors across the nation behind a slate of eight congressional candidates with the same qualifications: all women, all Democrats, and all doctors — pediatricians, gynecologists, and ER physicians among them. (Mershon, 1/12)

Dozens of distinguished physicians have served as the U.S. surgeon general in our nation’s history. That said, we rarely remember their names, including the surgeon general who may have had the farthest-reaching influence on our collective health.That man was Luther Terry. (Markel, 1/11)

The Association of American Medical Colleges President and CEO Dr. Darrell Kirch plans to step down from his role in June 2019, the group said Thursday. A psychiatrist and neuroscientist, Kirch has led AAMC since 2006. Prior to his time with the organization, Kirch served six years as senior vice president for health affairs and dean of the college of medicine at Pennsylvania State University. AAMC did not elaborate on why Kirch decided to step down.A nationwide search will be conducted by the AAMC Board of Directors and led by Dr. Marsha D. Rappley, AAMC's immediate past chair. (Johnson, 1/11)