Code of Medical Ethics 2012-2013: Current Opinions With Annotations

From the Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs of the American Medical Association, this 2012-2013 edition of the Code guides physicians and other medical professionals, attorneys, and patients on about 200 ethical opinions issued through 2011 on social policy issues; interprofessional and hospital relations; confidentiality, advertising, and communications media relations; fees and charges; physician records; practice matters; professional rights and responsibilities; and the patient-physician relationship. Each opinion refers to one of the nine Principles of Medical Ethics (which precede them) and is annotated with background reports providing a detailed analysis of key ethical considerations, the rationale behind the recommendations, a summary of all reported court decisions and selected state attorney general opinions that refer to the principles or opinions, and a list of citations to the opinion in judicial rulings and the medical, ethical, and legal literature. Opinions are issued directly by the Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs or are derived from longer reports. Included are new and updated opinions on topics such as advance care planning, organ transplantation from living donors, pediatric decision-making, and routine universal immunization of physicians for vaccine-preventable diseases. Annotation ©2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)