Revising the requirement of informed consent in an era of privatization, managed care and ACOs: Implications for bioethics and the connection between law and ethics

The ethical requirement of informed consent is one of the
most fundamental maxims in biomedical ethics, protecting the
autonomy of the patient/human subject. While this requirement
reflects an elementary moral duty towards persons in a clinical
setting, it was also developed in case law in line with a patient-
centered approach in a dyadic relationship. In Jay Katz's words, the
doctrine of informed consent "constituted a radical break with the
silence that had been the hallmark of physician-patient interactions
throughout the ages."