San Luis Obispo pediatrician René Bravo, M.D., has been installed as the 157th president of the California Medical Association (CMA), the largest and most influential state medical association representing more than 50,000 California physicians.

Addressing hundreds of physician delegates and health care leaders at CMA’s annual House of Delegates meeting in Los Angeles, Dr. Bravo reflected on his journey from the working-class communities of southeast Los Angeles County to leading the House of Medicine in California.

“My path here was improbable,” Dr. Bravo said. “My parents were hardworking immigrants—a union welder and a clerical worker—and I honor their memory today. But this isn’t about me—it’s about you and the sacred profession we share.”

In his inaugural address, Dr. Bravo called for unity, vigilance, and moral clarity in the face of mounting challenges to health care access, physician autonomy, and the safety net.

“The government cannot solve every problem,” he said. “It is up to us—the governed—to tell government and those elected by us what is just and acceptable. We must be relentless in our defense of the underserved, the disadvantaged, and the most vulnerable among us. In this struggle, we are on the side of the angels.”

A vision for CMA’s next chapter

As CMA president, Dr. Bravo said he will focus on strengthening the association’s influence in Sacramento and Washington, D.C.; revitalizing ties with the American Medical Association; and protecting all modes of medical practice—from solo and small-group physicians to those within large health systems.

“Human need must always triumph over economic profit,” he said. “We must continue to protect access to care, hold policymakers accountable for outcomes, and ensure our presence at the State Capitol is impossible to ignore.”

Dr. Bravo also encouraged CMA members to reexamine the association’s governance structure to ensure it meets the needs of a modern, digitally connected profession while preserving the value of local county medical societies.

A lifetime of leadership and advocacy

Dr. Bravo has served families and children on California’s Central Coast for 38 years. He is the founder and president of Bravo Pediatrics, a five-physician single-specialty group in San Luis Obispo.

At CMA, Dr. Bravo has served on the CMA Board of Trustees and on the boards of CALPAC and Physicians for a Healthy California. He is also a past president of the San Luis Obispo County Medical Society, where he chaired the Physician Wellness Committee for a decade, and previously served as chair of the CenCal Health Board of Directors, helping guide the Medi-Cal system for San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties.

Dr. Bravo assumes the presidency following San Francisco pediatrician Shannon Udovic-Constant, M.D. CMA thanks Dr. Udovic-Constant for her outstanding leadership and dedicated service to California’s physicians and patients over the past year. Dr. Udovic-Constant will continue to serve on the CMA Executive Committee as Immediate Past President.

The full 2025-2026 CMA Executive Committee includes:

• President: René Bravo, M.D., San Luis Obispo
• President-Elect: Jack Chou, M.D., Los Angeles
• Chair of the Board: Sergio R. Flores, M.D., San Diego
• Vice-Chair of the Board: Eric Hansen, D.O, Hesperia
• Speaker of the House: George Fouras, M.D., Los Angeles
• Vice Speaker of the House: Anna Yap, M.D., Sacramento
• Immediate Past President: Shannon L. Udovic-Constant, M.D., San Francisco