Ethics is about knowing the principles of right and wrong and then acting on those principles. Ethics is not just about character. It is about taking the duties of professionalism seriously, and not violating the trust or autonomy that the state has licensed to us. Making ethics punitive for physicians doesn't concern me. This is a reflection of our times.
Many people already think of an institutional ethics committee as a legal tribunal.
The congressional understanding of ethics is on display whenever a member's hypocritical story is discovered. For the time being, ethics and law are parallel. I do have two other concerns. First, ethics classes should help people to learn reasoning ability, so that they know how to act, not just what to do. Ethics does not have to be rote or absolutist, even through the board.