• To develop and maintain a national society of primary care sports medicine physicians who share a common philosophy, body of knowledge, and expertise related to sports medicine and its practice.
• To provide multi-disciplinary educational opportunities for primary care sports medicine physicians using meetings, video, and printed materials, and similar educational tools.
• To encourage and support research in the area of sports medicine.
• To work with the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine Foundation.
• To encourage and support the development and regular review of the knowledge base in sports medicine.
• To develop, and lead in formulating, position statements, guidelines, and educational materials about sports medicine topics for both professional and lay use.
• To provide a venue for ideas and information sharing among colleagues about the practical aspects of sports medicine practice and care delivery.
• To represent primary care sports medicine physicians in all issues and arenas affecting sports medicine, sports medicine physicians, and their ability to offer high quality care to the public.
• To promote the health and safety of athletes and physically active individuals through education of all involved in their care.

The Beginning of the American Medical Society of Sports Medicine (AMSSM). In 1991, five family physicians with strong self-learned sports medicine training and experience, Drs. David Hough, John Lombardo, Doug McKeag, Lee Rice, and Jim Puffer, sought to find a medical organization that would represent themselves and other like-minded physicians.   After exploring options to integrate with other national organizations, it became clear the best option was to start a new specialized organization that would adequately represent and support their sports medicine interests. They also each invested $2000 of their personal savings into a seed fund for this new organization. The 20 Founders of AMSSM included:  

1. Randall Eichner, MD, Internal Medicine
2. Elizabeth Gallup, MD, JD, Family Medicine
3. Brian Halpern, MD, Family Medicine
4. Jack Harvey, MD, Pediatrics
5. John Henderson, DO, Family Medicine
6. Stan Herring, MD, Physical Medicine and Rehab
7. David Hough, MD, Family Medicine (deceased)
8. Robert Johnson, MD, Family Medicine
9. Greg Landry, MD, Pediatrics
10. John Lombardo, MD, Family Medicine
11. Doug McKeag, MD, Family Medicine
12. Larry McLain, MD, Pediatrics
13. Robert Murphy, MD, Internal Medicine (deceased)
14. James Puffer, MD, Family Medicine
15. Lee Rice, DO, Family Medicine
16. Douglas Shaw, MD, Emergency Medicine
17. Deborah Squire, MD, Pediatrics
18. Mitch Story, DO, Family Medicine
19. Richard Strauss, MD, Internal and Preventive Medicine (deceased)
20. Jeffrey Tanji, MD, Family Medicine  

AMSSM's First Annual Meeting was held in San Diego in July 1992, with Dr. Brian Halpern MD as the guarantor, which held him personally responsible if the meeting failed monetarily. However, the rest of the Founders all verbally agreed to help cover any losses. However, this first meeting was a success! The approximately 120 physicians who attended, all trained in primary care specialties, had finally found an organization which supported their beliefs that they had a central role in providing high quality sports medicine care. By our 16 th Annual Meeting in Albuquerque in 2007, almost 800 physicians attended the conference, and our membership had grown to 1124 members. Thanks to the early vision and strong commitment of the dedicated Founders, AMSSM has become a strong, vital, multi-disciplinary organization of physicians, whose members