Medical professional liability and health care system reform.

Few issues elicit more emotion from physicians than medical malpractice. The very word "malpractice" implies guilt and immediately places the involved physician on the defensive. Defensive medicine adds 5% to 9% to the cost of medical care. Numerous solutions have been proposed, but special interests have blocked the implementation of these solutions in most states. Tort reform is necessary to control the escalation of medical costs. Copyright (c) 2010 American College of Cardiology Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.