Opinion: The coming medical ethics crisis

As a surgeon in practice for over 30 years, I fear that my profession will soon abandon its traditional code of ethics and adopt one more suited to veterinarians. One that places the interests of the payer (or owner) ahead of the patient. The process was begun by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in an effort to control exploding Medicare costs, and was accelerated by the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010.