News
A. T. Still, MD, DO: The AOA Had It Right in 2024
In 2024, the American Osteopathic Association’s (AOA's) own publications called the profession’s founder “A.T. Still, MD, DO.” The style ran through its anniversary coverage that year: a book club column in June, a birthday tribute and the Memorial Lecture report in...
DO Students’ Surcharge to Remain Distinctive
Osteopathic medicine defines itself by its difference. Its accreditor requires that every Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) student be taught osteopathic principles and practice (OPP) in each year of the curriculum, and that every college maintain a department of...
There’s No Guarantee That DO Numbers Will Continue to Grow
In July 2025, The New York Times put a question to its readers that the osteopathic profession has been answering for more than a century: “So Your Doctor Is a D.O. Does That Matter?” (1) The article was fair, even generous, and the American Osteopathic...
Employers Aren’t Confused About the DO. Patients Are.
Source: Rankin BS. The DO vs. MD debate: what health systems really think when they see your degree. Health eCareers. Published October 10,...
Where Does the Extra Money Go?
Graduates holding the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) degree who borrowed for medical school reported average educational debt of $286,812 in 2025. (1) Since July 1, 2026, new professional borrowers generally face a $50,000 annual federal loan limit and a $200,000...
Residency Opportunities Are Nearly Level. Debt Is Not.
For most of the last century, physicians holding the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) degree and those holding the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree trained in separate residency systems. That separation ended on June 30, 2020, when a five-year transition made the...
Medical School Debt: Who Pays When Washington Stops at $200K?
In June 2025 The New York Times warned, and in an article The Boston Globe reprinted, that caps on loans to graduate and professional students could worsen the doctor shortage.(1,2) The bill then before Congress would have limited federal borrowing...
California’s AB 1703 and DOs: How Much of a “Win”, Really?
California has a new law on who may call themselves an osteopath. The governor approved Assembly Bill 1703 on September 27, 2026, and its key sections take effect January 1, 2028 (1). The law was presented as a way to keep untrained hands off patients. In its final...
The Initials Question: Controversial Since 1899
Source: Greenwald B. Letter perfect: can a new degree lead to more respect, recognition for DOs? The DO. 2008;48(2):30-34. In February 2008 the American Osteopathic Association’s (AOA’s) magazine, The DO, asked whether a new degree designation could bring...