Tort reform part of health debate

Many of us would agree with Dr. Nuzzarello's conviction (Fence Post, Sept. 19) that we should keep the majority of what is right, while fixing the obvious problems in our health care system. Missed in the good doctor's wind up sentence is that the free care he and other doctors and hospitals donate is simply added on to the medical bills of those who are insured.

A greater problem that is hardly if ever touched on is that doctors and hospitals are bogged down with high-cost malpractice insurance premiums, plus the often big settlements that are paid out of those resulting law suits where this is also being added on to the medical bills of the insured.

While we do need some form of medical malpractice protection we also in turn need tort reform badly. But is this a reality when many of our legislators are also lawyers not wanting to pass restrictions on their fellow brother lawyers who make a darn good living on malpractice cases?

Walter Santi

Bloomingdale