The Massachusetts Medical Society (MMS) ^* is the oldest continuously-operating state medical society in the United States. Incorporated on Nov. 1, 1781, by an act of the Massachusetts state legislature, the MMS consists of approximately 18,500 physicians, medical students and residents. The majority of the members live or practice in Massachusetts and the immediate vicinity.

The Massachusetts Medical Society is the owner and publisher of The New England Journal of Medicine It also publishes the Journal Watch family of professional newsletters [http://www.jwatch.org.

In addition to its publishing activities, the key activities of the MMS include medical education for physicians; public health education for physicians and the public; legislative and regulatory advocacy for physicians and patients; health policy research.