Tort reform will help reform health care

Mr. Santi's comments are right on - those who pay for those who don't. I do feel a need to clarify his comment about passing on costs. It is true that the cost of caring for the uninsured is passed on by hospitals, pharmaceutical and insurance companies.

However, physicians do not have a mechanism to pass these costs on to other patients. Our charges are fixed by Medicare and the insurance companies.

I completely agree that this country needs tort reform, and not just for the medical industry. Unfortunately, when doctors complain about tort reform, most people think we're just whining. The fact is the enormous cost of litigation is that it results in the ordering of unnecessary tests and procedures. Some estimate this may amount to 30 percent of the total cost of health care.

Litigation protection is so ingrained into the way we practice medicine that doctors no longer even realize that most of the tests we order are done to comply with the "standard of care," which is a legal, not medical definition. The cost of malpractice insurance and lawsuit rewards are actually a very small part of the problem, but frequently those who oppose reform refer to this as the only cost incurred.

Dr. Joseph Nuzzarello

Wheaton