Dr. Bobby Mukkamala was elected president of the American Medical Association last June. | Photo credit: BY ARRANGEMENT
Investing in disease prevention instead of spending on its treatment should be the order of the day, and it’s high time governments realized that, said American Medical Association President Bobby Mukkamala.
Dr. Mukkamala, a head and neck surgeon who was elected president of the American Medical Association in June 2025, becoming the first person of Indian origin to hold the position, has his roots in the Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh. While his father, Mukkamala Apparao hails from Buddhavaram, his mother Mukkamala Sumathi hails from Thotlavallur. Both are doctors who moved to the US after completing their MBBS in India.
In a telephonic interview with The Hindu on Tuesday (January 20, 2026), Dr. Mukkumala, who visited Vijayawada last week as part of the AMA’s tour of India and is scheduled to travel to Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur and Agra, said: “Every country has two choices: either they invest in the prevention of diseases that we choose, or we invest in it. Disease prevention not only saves many lives, but is also more economical.”
Focusing on disease prevention would mean strengthening the country’s health infrastructure, increasing the number of doctors and launching awareness campaigns, said Dr. Mukkamala.
“More importantly, there needs to be a cultural change. We need to constantly discuss how to prevent cancer, diabetes or stroke to save lives,” he said.
Dr. Pointing out that life expectancy in the US has been stagnant for some time due to many factors, Mukkamala hoped that India would not go in the wrong direction by assuming that the life expectancy curve will always rise. “We have to actively work to make that happen, and one of the things we can do is improve access to health care.”
The Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) recently pointed out in its Annual Ground Water Quality Report-2025 that there is high presence of nitrate, iron, fluoride, lead and other metals in the state’s groundwater.
When asked about the impact of heavy metal contamination in drinking water in AP on public health, Dr. Mukkamala said this is a serious problem and needs to be addressed immediately. Symptoms of metal contaminated drinking water will not be immediately visible. But he warned that the effects appear over a long period of time and can affect children’s ability to learn.
Dr. Echoing his point, Mukkamala said, “It is always better to focus on the prevention of disease than to focus our energy and time on its treatment. After all, the healthier the country, the more productive its people.”
Published – 20 Jan 2026 20:58 IST
