In “Trump to nominate Georgia Rep. Tom Price as health secretary” (Nov. 29), you reported that Congressman Tom Price believes that lawsuits against medical professionals are one of the “cost drivers” that keep health costs high.

Congressman Price, who is also a physician surely knows, as most physicians do, that too often these lawsuits are based on inadequate and flimsy evidence. Nevertheless, physicians have to spend considerable time defending them. As much as three or four years or more.

These suits are very disruptive to physicians’ practices. And many of them order extra tests and consultations just to have a defense in case they are hit with threats of lawsuits. This is called defensive medicine. It raises the cost of health care enormously. So if Price can make the burden of proof to instigate liability suits against doctors more stringent and exacting, he will have taken an important step to controlling the costs of health care.

Dr. Edward Volpintesta

Bethel