OPINIONLetters to the Editor - Dec. 15, 2008Physician-assisted suicide will stir public mistrust of the profession - Pa. needs liability reform to keep its doctors -- and their economic benefit Physician-assisted suicide will stir public mistrust of the professionRegarding "Washington becomes 2nd state to allow physician-assisted suicide" (Article, Nov. 24): How sad that we value life so little that physicians are willing to forsake their role as healers. When will we begin to look back in history to the days when we shook off the mistrust of the populous, and Hippocrates and his followers disavowed dealing in death? Until recently, patients were assured that to the best of our ability we would preserve life. No longer. Now we might as easily cause their demise as prevent it. Who will be trusted? I am thankful for the AMA's strong opposition to this, which is "fundamentally inconsistent with the physician's role as healer." I hope that this opposition will speak critically of doctors who choose to take life and, in addition, forcefully will oppose further erosion of the public trust. --Joseph Zanga, MD, Greenville, N.C. Pa. needs liability reform to keep its doctors -- and their economic benefitRegarding "Doctors tally the economic value practices bring to communities" (Article, Nov. 10) and "Pennsylvania health system reform hits snag over coverage, liability help" (Article, Nov. 10): I hope that Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell reads the article on the economic value physicians bring to their communities and states. It is hard to miss the irony of that front-page story when inside Gov. Rendell insists he will not back extending support for physicians in their mandated payment into the Mcare (Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error) Fund. I was the top-volume surgeon in my county in western Pennsylvania the year I left, five years ago, for a state that had the courage and foresight to pass comprehensive professional liability reform -- California. Without true professional liability reform, Pennsylvania will remain a place where it will be extremely difficult to recruit and retain physicians, all to the detriment of the patients and the economy. --Paul Burton, DO, Redlands, Calif. Copyright 2008 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.
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