NEWS

21 JANUARY 2026

AMA Queensland charts new course

A warm and happy new year greeting to all AMA Queensland members. I know that many of you will have worked with skeleton staffing throughout the festive season but I hope all had even just a brief chance to relax and reflect on the past year and consider your goals for the one ahead of us.

As President, I enter 2026 curiously in alignment with the symbolism and themes of the Year of the Horse – with momentum and a renewed sense of adventure and enthusiasm. We have so much to look forward to this year, with new services and benefits to make all Queensland doctors’ lives better, no matter your career stage.


Essential AMAQ benefits for every career stage

  • Free membership!
  • Events: more than any other state or territory to network and kick-start your future career
  • Discounts to help you with the cost of living as a medical student
  • Free Internship 101 Guide
  • Tailored advocacy through our Committee of Doctors in Training

Explore more benefits here

  • Union membership – essential for every doctor working in Queensland Health facilities and included in your AMAQ membership
  • Events: more than any other state or territory to network and get your career on track
  • Tailored advocacy through our Committee of Doctors in Training
  • Discounts to help you with the cost of living as an early-career doctor

Explore more benefits here

  • Union membership – essential for every doctor working in Queensland Health facilities and included in your AMAQ membership
  • Events: more than any other state or territory to network and support your career
  • Tailored advocacy to suit the realities of working in Queensland Health through our Committee of Consultant Specialists
  • Micro-credentialling through AMAQ’s registered training organisation

Explore more benefits here

  • AMAQ Queensland Medical Costs Guide to reflect the true costs of delivering health care across our vast state, exclusive to AMAQ members
  • Workplace relations for advice, training, support and resources
  • Micro-credentialling through AMAQ’s registered training organisation
  • Tailored advocacy to suit the needs of GPs through our Committee of General Practice
  • Discounts to support your business and professional needs, including legal and financial services, AICD programs and more
  • Events: more than any other state or territory to support both your career and your business

Explore more benefits here

  • AMAQ Queensland Medical Costs Guide to reflect the true costs of delivering health care across our vast state, exclusive to AMAQ members
  • Workplace relations for advice, training, support and resources
  • Union membership – essential for every doctor working in Queensland Health facilities, including VMOs, and included in your AMAQ membership
  • Micro-credentialling through AMAQ’s registered training organisation
  • Tailored advocacy to suit the needs of private specialists through our Committee of Consultant Specialists
  • Discounts to support your business and professional needs, including legal and financial services, AICD programs and more
  • Events: more than any other state or territory to support both your career and your business

Explore more benefits here

  • 25% off your first year!
  • AMAQ established the first IMG working group in Australia to provide better supports and advocate for IMGs on arrival in Australia, during their early careers and beyond
  • Union membership – essential for every IMG working in Queensland Health facilities and included in your AMAQ membership
  • Workplace relations for advice and support for private practice IMGs
  • IMG-specific training and orientation supports through the AMAQ registered training organisation
  • Discounts to support your personal and professional needs, including legal and financial services, home and office goods, automotive, lifestyle, travel and more
  • AMAQ Queensland Medical Costs Guide to reflect the true costs of delivering health care across our vast state, exclusive to AMAQ members
  • Events: more than any other state or territory to network and get your career on track

Explore more benefits here

  • AMAQ Queensland Medical Costs Guide to reflect the true costs of delivering health care across our vast state, exclusive to AMAQ members
  • Tailored advocacy to suit the needs of senior doctors through our Council, committees and working groups
  • Workplace relations for advice, training, support and resources
  • Discounts to support your personal and professional needs, including legal and financial services, home and office goods, automotive, lifestyle, travel and more
  • Events: more than any other state or territory to support both your career and your business

Explore more benefits here

  • Practice manager affiliate
  • Workplace relations for practice advice and support
  • AMAQ Queensland Medical Costs Guide to reflect the true costs of delivering health care across our vast state, exclusive to AMAQ members
  • Events: more than any other state or territory to support your career and practice

Explore more benefits here

We thank every AMA Queensland member for your ongoing support.

Yours sincerely,

 



Dr Nick Yim
President
AMA Queensland


Our purpose at AMA Queensland is to deliver strong medical leadership, support and advocacy for our members that realises better health outcomes for all Queenslanders. We have been doing this since our formation in 1894 as the Queensland branch of the British Medical Association and after formal arrangements with AMA Ltd commenced in 1962.

Like many businesses, our operating environment has changed over that period, and we can no longer sustain viability or grow our services under the existing arrangements with AMA Ltd. Our members are also struggling under cost of living pressures and we want to make our membership fees affordable for all.

That is why we have negotiated in collaboration with other state AMAs for three years for a more equitable arrangement. This has been an exhaustive process that included multiple series of meetings, offers and formal mediation.

AMA Queensland members will have received an unexpected message from AMA Ltd yesterday about these negotiations. That message was sent while negotiations were still on foot, without advice to AMA Queensland's board which continued to seek resolution in good faith.

AMA Queensland must now chart a new course, one that will see us better resourced to continue our existing services and invest in more tangible benefits for our members. That includes things like more free events and professional services that Queensland doctors need to further their careers and changes to our fees, including reductions. We have already started this important work, including to:

  • ensure federal government health policy works for the unique needs of Queensland doctors and patients
  • deliver an AMAQ member-only and Queensland-specific MBS guide that reflects the real costs of delivering health care across our vast state
  • establish a Queensland-based registered training organisation to deliver micro-credentialling for private practices, including doctors and their staff
  • review our fee structure to align it with members’ needs.

 

Meanwhile, we continue to deliver our existing range of services to our members.

That includes our union partnership with ASMOFQ, which has always been state-based and remains strong. Every public hospital doctor needs industrial representation to protect their rights and, thanks to our formal partnership, this has now been secured following the successful negotiation of the MOCA7 agreement.

Our Council, committees and working groups are still in place and advocating hard for health system improvements for Queensland consultant and GP specialists, doctors in training and medical students. They have always punched above their weight, advocating for reform in critical areas like:

 

Many of our 2025 achievements are a result of their hard work. These committees will now have a direct voice to Canberra to make sure federal health settings suit the unique realities of providing health care in the Sunshine State.

Our events, workplace relations and membership teams will also continue just as they have been. We look forward to being able to now expand the services they offer members at readily affordable rates.

As we roll out this work, we will provide updates via our regular communications and website, so keep an eye on those in your usual channels.

We thank every AMA Queensland member for your ongoing support.

11 December 2025

AMA Queensland members may have received a message and invoice from AMA Ltd today. Please note you do not need to pay this invoice to keep your AMA Queensland membership.

Read more

2 December 2025

AMA Queensland understands that receipt of AMA Ltd’s message late yesterday will have concerned some members. For those who have already renewed their AMA Queensland membership for 2026, those fees are inclusive of the expanded services, including the AMAQ member-only, Queensland-specific MBS guide and direct Commonwealth advocacy. 
  
For members who have concerns, our team stands ready to answer your queries, including processing member cancellations and full refunds should that be your choice. 
  
Members are advised that AMA Ltd-only membership does not include AMA Queensland’s suite of services, such as ASMOFQ representation, workplace relations support or entry to AMA Queensland events.

Our membership team can be reached on email at [email protected] or phone on 07 3872 2222.