A resolution, introduced by the American College of Preventive Medicine at the 1996 American Medical Association (AMA) Annual Meeting, asked the AMA to recommend to physicians the use of the United States Preventive Services Task Force's Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, Second Edition. In response to that resolution, the AMA's Council on Scientific Affairs has reviewed and evaluated this publication. The recommendations of the Council on Scientific Affairs on the use of the Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, Second Edition, by clinicians and medical educators are included in this report. These recommendations were adopted as AMA Policy at the AMA Annual Meeting in June 1997.