AMGA Mourns Loss Of President And CEO Donald W. Fisher

It is with deep sadness that AMGA recently announces the passing of Donald W. Fisher, Ph.D., CAE, AMGA president and chief executive officer. Dr. Fisher was 71 when he passed away from cancer March 26, 2017.

Dr. Fisher has been at the helm of AMGA since 1980, leading it to become the voice of the nation’s most prestigious multispecialty medical groups and integrated systems of care. He had a tremendous impact on American health care as a strong advocate for coordinated, integrated delivery systems, working to make his vision of superior patient care a reality.

“Don leaves a professional and personal legacy that is not bound by time or physical space,” said Donn Sorensen, chair of the AMGA Board of Directors and president, east region, Mercy. “His dedication to advancing the best possible patient care, to leading with integrity, and to building a great place to work, not forgetting to have a little fun while accomplishing much, have made a permanent mark on the hearts of all who knew him. We will miss him greatly.”

Sorensen continued, “Don was that rare combination of visionary and doer, plus an amazing friend and family man. He was incredibly proud of AMGA and all of its employees, and for more than 35 years continually drove the organization to achieve excellence, innovation, growth, and service to members and the broader healthcare community. Don was equally as proud of his wonderful family, his children, Kim and Jeff, and their families. On behalf of our board of directors and employees, we extend our deepest sympathies to them.”

Dr. Fisher joined AGPA, AMGA’s predecessor, in 1980. Through a mix of program development, collaboration with members and the board, and business acumen, he has guided AMGA through more than 35 years of growth. Under his tenure, AMGA expanded from 8,000 physicians practicing in its member organizations in 1980 to 175,000 today. Dr. Fisher was a strong advocate for multispecialty medical groups and other organized systems of care and for the patients served by these systems by continuously striving to improve patient care through innovation, information sharing, benchmarking, the creation of sound public policy, and leadership development.

Dr. Fisher earned a B.S. in biology/chemistry from Millsaps College in 1968, his M.S. in anatomy from the University of Mississippi, School of Medicine in 1971 and a Ph.D. in anatomy from the University of Mississippi in 1973. His passion was health care, and he served on numerous related boards and councils as well as received many honors, including the Russell V. Lee Lectureship and the Presidential Award from the American Academy of Physician Assistants. Other honors include being elected to Who's Who in Health Care, being named to Distinguished Leaders in Health Care and named by Modern Healthcare as one of the 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare.

Dr. Fisher’s complete biography is available here (https://www.amga.org/wcm/AboutAMGA/bod/Fisher.aspx).

About AMGA
AMGA is a trade association leading the transformation of health care in America. Representing multispecialty medical groups and integrated systems of care, we advocate, educate, innovate, and empower our members to deliver the next level of high performance health. AMGA is the national voice promoting awareness of medical groups’ recognized excellence in the delivery of coordinated, high-quality, cost-effective care. More than 175,000 physicians practice in our member organizations, delivering care to one in three Americans. For more information, visit amga.org.