A state senator today promotes his pending bill to eliminate what he calls Georgia’s “dysfunctional malpractice litigation system” and the spiraling costs of defensive medicine — brought about, in part, by too many unnecessary tests ordered by doctors worried about being sued. In response, another state legislator calls the legislation an unconstitutional attack on a citizen’s right to a trial by a jury of his or her peers. In our third column, public health advocates call for more Spanish-speaking administrators to help ethnic communities navigate the intricacies of the Affordable Care Act.