Recent state and federal laws and proposed legislation may "inappropriately infringe" on patient-physician relationships and impede quality care, according to a paper released by the American College of Physicians.
The ACP points to several examples of laws that may "interfere, or have the potential to interfere, with appropriate clinical practice," including:
• Requiring physicians to discuss specific practices that in the physician's best clinical judgment are not individualized to the patient;
• Requiring physicians to provide diagnostic tests or medical interventions that are not supported by evidence or clinical relevance; or
• Limiting information that physicians can disclose to patients.
The ACP paper also discusses a recommended framework to help guide the introduction of any proposed law that may impose restrictions on the patient-physician relationship.
The ACP points to several examples of laws that may "interfere, or have the potential to interfere, with appropriate clinical practice," including:
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• Requiring physicians to discuss specific practices that in the physician's best clinical judgment are not individualized to the patient;
• Requiring physicians to provide diagnostic tests or medical interventions that are not supported by evidence or clinical relevance; or
• Limiting information that physicians can disclose to patients.
The ACP paper also discusses a recommended framework to help guide the introduction of any proposed law that may impose restrictions on the patient-physician relationship.
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