Healthcare’s Challenges Have Changed. MGMA’s Purpose Has Not.

Englewood, Colorado and San Antonio, Texas, Sept. 24, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Workforce shortages. Financial pressure. Artificial intelligence. Rising expectations from patients and providers. Medical practice leaders are being asked to navigate extraordinary change while keeping their organizations strong and patient care moving forward. 

They do not have to do it alone. 

From September 27 to 30, healthcare executives, practice leaders and industry innovators will gather in San Antonio for MGMA’s 100th Annual Conference, celebrating a century of advancing the business of healthcare. 

MGMA’s story began in 1926, when 32 clinic managers representing 21 medical groups met at the Madison Club in Madison, Wisconsin. Their agenda was practical and urgent: accounting, collections, personnel challenges, patient flow, office operations, and comparative statistics. What was intended as an exchange for the “mutual problems” of running a medical practice became the foundation of MGMA. 

Today, that modest gathering has grown into a global community of more than 60,000 medical practice administrators, executives and leaders representing more than 15,000 medical groups and supporting over 350,000 physicians.  

“Healthcare leaders have come to MGMA for 100 years because the work is too important and too complex to do alone,” said Akash Madiah, acting chief executive officer of MGMA. “Our founders built a community around practical solutions and shared knowledge. Our members have carried that idea forward by strengthening practices, expanding patient access and leading through every major change healthcare has faced. This celebration belongs to them, and so does the future we are building together.” 

A Century of Turning Data Into Decisions 

Long before benchmarking dashboards and workforce analytics, MGMA’s founders understood that medical practices could perform better when leaders compared experiences and results. 

The first conference included discussions of accounting, collections, personnel, patient handling and “comparative statistics and graphs.” That early focus on understanding performance across practices laid the groundwork for MGMA’s modern benchmarking resources.  

Today, MGMA data helps healthcare leaders evaluate compensation, staffing, financial health, productivity, and operations so they can understand where their organizations stand and identify opportunities to improve. MGMA describes its resources as the industry’s most comprehensive medical practice for benchmarking datasets.  

“Trusted data gives leaders the confidence to act,” said Andrew Swanson, chief customer success officer of MGMA. “It helps them see beyond the immediate pressure, understand what is changing and make decisions grounded in the realities of medical practice. In an industry where every staffing, financial and operational decision can affect access to care, that clarity has never mattered more.” 

While trusted data helps healthcare organizations make informed decisions, it is the people leading those organizations who turn insights into action. MGMA members have strengthened practices, improved patient access, and helped shape the future of healthcare through their leadership, innovation, and commitment to their profession. 

Honoring the Leaders Moving Healthcare Forward 

The centennial conference will also recognize professionals whose leadership, advocacy, innovation and service are strengthening medical practices and advancing the healthcare management profession. 

The 2026 Future Four Award celebrates professionals whose accomplishments are shaping the future of their organizations and healthcare management. This year’s recipients include: 

• Sonya Biswas - University of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, MHA '27 

• Sarah Brice – Director of Physician Services, Physician Services Group, McKinney, Texas 

• Jackie Hansen – Practice Manager, HCA Physician Services, Wichitia, Kansas 

• April Marsh, RN – Staff Development Coordinator – Desert Cover Nursing Center, Gilbert, Arizona 

Adam Pople, FACHE, FACMPE, director of Ambulatory Acceleration Population Health at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau, Missouri will receive the 2026 Legislative Liaison of the Year Award for advocacy, engagement and leadership that advance the interests of medical practices and the patients they serve. 

Brigid Jones, MBA, BSN, BA, RN-NIC, FACMPE, THDC, HRMC; operational strategy consultant pf JBE Consultants in Denver will receive the 2026 ACMPE Forum Representative of the Year Award for leadership and service that educate, motivate and support ACMPE members while strengthening the medical practice management community. 

MGMA will also recognize the 54 members of the 2026 ACMPE Fellow Class. Fellowship represents the highest level of professional achievement within ACMPE and reflects sustained leadership, service, professional development and commitment to advancing medical practice management. 

The 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Tracy Bird, FACMPE CPC CPMA CEMC CPC-I, president and owner of Medical Practice Advisors in Spring Hill, Kansas, in recognition of exceptional service, leadership and lasting contributions to medical practice management and MGMA-ACMPE. 

“These honorees represent what has sustained MGMA for a century: people who step forward, share what they know and elevate the profession for those who follow,” said Madiah. “They remind us that progress in healthcare is not abstract. It happens because committed leaders make difficult decisions, challenge outdated thinking and create better paths for their teams, physicians and patients.” 

From Here Forward 

The 100th Annual Conference with the theme, From Here Forward, will feature education, peer connection and discussions focused on the issues defining the next era of medical practice, including leadership, workforce transformation, technology, operational performance and the evolving needs of patients and providers. 

For 100 years, MGMA has brought healthcare leaders together around shared challenges and a common purpose. As the organization enters its second century, it will continue to provide the trusted data, advocacy, education and professional community leaders need to build stronger practices and a stronger healthcare system. Part of that is equipping healthcare leaders with the knowledge and tools to elevate their practices.

100th Annual Conference 

Dates: September 27–30, 2026 
Location: Henry B. González Convention Center, San Antonio, Texas 
Registration: www.mgma.com 

Contact Info

Medical Group Management Association (MGMA)
[email protected]
+1 877-275-6462 ext. 1478

Source: MGMA

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