1 Children's Orthopedic Hospital and Medical Center; Departments of Pediatrics and Health Services, University of Washington, Box C-5371 Seattle, WA 98105
In the belief that public officials potentially can affect health more than physicians, for the past 15 years I have engaged in the part-time practice of "political medicine." When I started as a starry-eyed rookie, I viewed successful passage of some legislation as a big deal. As a scarred, and perhaps burned-out, veteran I now know that getting a law enacted by Congress is simple compared to seeing that it is implemented in the manner intended by its original sponsors. The reason is as much due to the fraility of human nature as to the constitutional separation of powers among the three branches of government.