Public Health and the Law

2012 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 690-695 ◽  
Author(s):  
James G. Hodge ◽  
Lexi C. White ◽  
Andrew Sniegowski
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Public Health Officials ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Structural Principles ◽  
Laws And Policies ◽  
Private Actors

Promoting and protecting the public's health in the United States and abroad are intricately tied to laws and policies. Laws provide support for public health measures, authorize specific actions among public and private actors, and empower public health officials. Laws can also inhibit or restrict efforts designed to improve communal health through protections for individual rights or structural principles of government. Advancing the health of populations through law is complex and subject to constant tradeoffs. This column seeks to explore the role of law in the interests of public health through scholarly and applied assessments across a spectrum of key issues. The first of these assessments focuses on a critical topic in emergency legal preparedness.

scholarly journals Public Health Literacy for Lawyers

2003 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 701-713 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendy E. Parmet ◽  
Anthony Robbins
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
The Public ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
The World ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Public Health Literacy

Public health professionals recognize the critical role the law plays in determining the success of public health measures. Even before September 11, 2001, public health experience with tobacco use, HIV, industrial pollution and other potent threats to the health of the public demonstrated that laws can assist or thwart public health efforts. The new focus on infectious threats and bioterrorism, starting with the anthrax attacks through the mail and continuing with SARS, has highlighted the important role of law.For lawyers to serve as effective partners in public health, they should have a basic familiarity with public health: how public health professionals see the world and the key issues they tackle. A practical grasp of public health can be acquired, and often is acquired, “on the job.”

Orientalism, Empire, and The Racial Muslim

2021 ◽  
pp. 221-244
Author(s):  
Sahar Aziz
Keyword(s):  
Social Construction ◽  
The United States ◽  
Religious Minority ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
American Imperialism ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Us ◽  
Us Government ◽  
Private Actors

To protect the security of all, we must curtail the liberty of Muslims. That is the narrative the US government has peddled to the American public since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. As a result, national security has effectively served as the pretext for myriad forms of discrimination against Muslims by public and private actors. This overt targeting of a religious minority reveals a glaring contradiction: Muslims are being treated with open hostility by government and private actors alike despite America’s foundational embrace of religious freedom. The author argues that the reason for this lies in the social construction of Muslims as a racial minority, rather than or in addition to being a religious minority—what the author calls The Racial Muslim. This chapter explores the role of Orientalism (European and American) and American imperialism in the Middle East in the racialization of Muslims in the United States.

Patient Autonomy, Capacity, and Consent

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Donnelly ◽  
Jessica Berg
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
National Level ◽  
The United States ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
National Standard ◽  
Legal Principles ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Human Rights Norms ◽  
Law And Legislation

This chapter explores a number of key issues: the role of competence and capacity, advance directives, and decisions made for others. It analyses the ways these are treated in the United States and in selected European jurisdictions. National-level capacity legislation and human rights norms play a central role in Europe, which means that healthcare decisions in situations of impaired capacity operate in accordance with a national standard. In the United States, the legal framework is more state-based (rather than federal), and the courts have played a significant role, with both common law and legislation varying considerably across jurisdictions. Despite these differences, this chapter identifies some similar legal principles which have developed.

Preparedness and response in Portuguese emergency plans - Interaction with public health

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
G Leiras ◽  
A Martins
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Authority ◽  
Civil Protection ◽  
Emergency Plans ◽  
Emergency Situations ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities ◽  
Protection Authority

Abstract Background Articulation between Civil Protection and Public Health authorities is of paramount importance to control, reduce and prevent threats to the health of the population in situations of crisis or catastrophes. National Civil Protection Authority produces Emergency Plans which describe the role of every stakeholder in emergency situations. Role and importance of Public Health and Public Health Authorities is not always present or well described and known amongst stakeholders. Methods Data was collected from all Districtal Emergency Plans (n = 18). Each document was analysed considering time frame, refences to Public Health and Health Authorities, definition of roles, communication channels, coordination and inclusion of intersectoral communication flow. Quantitative analysis included absolute and relative frequencies and qualitative analysis to all parts related to the terms “Public Health” and “Health Authority”. Each document was reviewed by 2 independent researchers. Results From 18 Districtal Emergency Plans (DEP) analysed, 94,4% (n = 17) had references to Public Health, but none referred the role of Public Health Officers. Only 16,7% referred to Health Authorities, although 94,4% mentioned the law 135/2013, defining the role and attributes of Health Authority. In 72,2%, coordination of Public Health Measures was attributed to the National Medical Emergency Institute. Epidemiological surveillance and Public Health Emergencies were referred in 55,6%, and attributed to the Regional Administration of Health. Conclusions Public Health Authorities and Public Health Medical Officers role in articulation with National Civil Protection Authority in emergency situations lacks severely, with this role being replaced by other entities. This is of great concern regarding management and control of diseases, particularly communicable diseases. Key messages Public Health Authorities lack the necessary involvement in Emergency Plans and emergency situations. Public health measures are coordinated by other entities rather than Public Health Authorities.

Unresolved Issues in Controlling the Tuberculosis Epidemic Among the Foreign-Born in the United States

1996 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 503-536
Author(s):  
Guido S. Weber
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
The United States ◽  
Laboratory Research ◽  
Treatment Programs ◽  
State Governments ◽  
Foreign Born ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Department Of Health ◽  
Public Health Officials ◽  
Year 2000

Tuberculosis (TB), “the world’s most neglected health crisis,” has returned after decades of decline, but has only gradually caught the attention of governments as a formidable threat to public health. By 1984, when TB cases hit an all-time low, federal and state governments stopped supporting the medical infrastructure that once served to contain the disease. State officials around the nation began dismantling laboratory research programs and closing TB clinics and sanitoria. Since 1985, however, TB rates have steadily increased to 26,673 reported cases in 1992, and some have estimated that by the year 2000, there could be a twenty percent increase. By 1993, Congress, realizing that TB could pose a major public health threat, allocated over $100 million to the Department of Health and Human Services for TB prevention and treatment programs. Those funds, however, were sorely needed years before and amounted to only a fraction of what public health officials believe necessary to control TB today.

scholarly journals Injury-related falls from bicycles, skateboards, roller skates, and non-motorized scooters in the United States: 2005 - 2014

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 16
Author(s):  
William Milczarski ◽  
Peter Tuckel ◽  
Richard Maisel
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
New York ◽  
Negative Binomial ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Specific Treatment ◽  
Negative Binomial Regression ◽  
The United States ◽  
Treatment Modalities ◽  
Public Health Officials ◽  
National Databases

Purpose: To provide an updated and comparative analysis of injury-related falls from bicycles, skateboards, roller skates and non-motorized scooters.Methods: The study uses two national databases – the Nationwide Emergency Department Sample and the Nationwide Inpatient Sample  – and subnational databases for New York, California, and Maryland.  Univariate and multivariate analyses (negative binomial regression) are performed to identify effects of age, gender, racial-ethnic background, and region on the incidence of injury-related falls from each of the four devices.Results: The rate of injuries due to falls from bicycles far surpasses the rates due to falls from the other devices.  When a measure of “exposure” is taken into consideration, however, the rate of injuries from skateboards outstrips the rates from bicycles or roller skates.  The profile of patients who are injured from falls from each of the four devices is distinctive.  Asian-Americans are greatly underrepresented among those who suffer a fall-related injury from any of the four devices.  The incidence of injuries attributable to falls varies considerably by geographic region.Conclusions: Public health officials need to be mindful that while certain activities such as scootering might be gaining in popularity, the number of injuries sustained from bicycles still dwarfs the number attributable to falls from skateboards, roller skates, and scooters combined.  Thus special attention needs to be paid to both prevent falls from bicycles and specific treatment modalities.  It is important for public health officials to gather injury data at the local level to allocate prevention and treatment resources more efficiently.

Differences in Severity and Emotions for Public and Private Face-to-Face and Cyber Victimization Across Six Countries

2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (8) ◽  
pp. 1216-1229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle F. Wright ◽  
Takuya Yanagida ◽  
Ikuko Aoyama ◽  
Anna Ševčíková ◽  
Hana Macháčková ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Responses ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cyber Victimization ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Perceived Severity ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Individualism And Collectivism ◽  
Age Range

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of medium (face-to-face, cyber) and publicity (public, private) in perceptions of severity and emotional responses to victimization among adolescents from China, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, India, Japan, and the United States, while controlling for gender, individualism, and collectivism. There were 3,432 adolescents (age range = 11-15 years, 49% girls) included in this study. They read four hypothetical victimization scenarios, which were manipulated based on the medium and publicity, including public face-to-face victimization, private face-to-face victimization, public cyber victimization, and private cyber victimization. After reading the scenarios, adolescents rated the severity of each scenario and their feelings of anger, sadness, and embarrassment following victimization. Overall, higher severity related to each of the emotional responses. Furthermore, greater perceptions of severity increased adolescents’ feelings of anger, sadness, and embarrassment more often for public victimization and face-to-face victimization than for private victimization and cyber victimization. Some variations were found in these associations based on country of origin. The findings from this study indicate that perceived severity and emotional responses are different in various victimization contexts. Therefore, it is important to consider various victimization contexts.

scholarly journals Engagement with COVID-19 Public Health Measures in the United States: A Cross-Sectional Social Media Analysis from June to November 2020 (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daisy Massey ◽  
Chenxi Huang ◽  
Yuan Lu ◽  
Alina Cohen ◽  
Yahel Oren ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Daily Life ◽  
The United States ◽  
Media Analysis ◽  
Prevention Measures ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
The Us

BACKGROUND The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has continued to spread in the US and globally. Closely monitoring public engagement and perception of COVID-19 and preventive measures using social media data could provide important information for understanding the progress of current interventions and planning future programs. OBJECTIVE To measure the public’s behaviors and perceptions regarding COVID-19 and its daily life effects during the recent 5 months of the pandemic. METHODS Natural language processing (NLP) algorithms were used to identify COVID-19 related and unrelated topics in over 300 million online data sources from June 15 to November 15, 2020. Posts in the sample were geotagged, and sensitivity and specificity were both calculated to validate the classification of posts. The prevalence of discussion regarding these topics was measured over this time period and compared to daily case rates in the US. RESULTS The final sample size included 9,065,733 posts, 70% of which were sourced from the US. In October and November, discussion including mentions of COVID-19 and related health behaviors did not increase as it had from June to September, despite an increase in COVID-19 daily cases in the US beginning in October. Additionally, counter to reports from March and April, discussion was more focused on daily life topics (69%), compared with COVID-19 in general (37%) and COVID-19 public health measures (20%). CONCLUSIONS There was a decline in COVID-19-related social media discussion sourced mainly from the US, even as COVID-19 cases in the US have increased to the highest rate since the beginning of the pandemic. Targeted public health messaging may be needed to ensure engagement in public health prevention measures until a vaccine is widely available to the public.

Who Are the Immigrants?

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Alba ◽  
Nancy Foner
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
The United States ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Immigration Laws ◽  
Economic Migration ◽  
Laws And Policies ◽  
Social Landscapes ◽  
Permanent Residents

This chapter explores the role of post-World War II immigration laws and policies of France, Germany, Great Britain, the Netherlands, United States, and Canada in giving rise to the mix of new social groups on their social landscapes. In one fundamental sense, the immigration regimes of European countries, the United States, and Canada are very much alike. All are restrictive in that they set limits on the numbers and type of people who can settle as permanent residents. There are, however, important transatlantic differences, lending some support to the common perception that Canada and the United States are more welcoming of immigration. Western European countries continue to be wary about immigration from outside of Europe. Their wariness is reflected in their attempts to make migration through marriages to the second generation more difficult as well as in immigration laws that constrain economic migration from the global South, keeping its numbers modest while seeking to select high human-capital immigrants.

Il potere e il problema della qualitŕ. Considerazioni della prospettiva della sociologia economica

2009 ◽  
pp. 143-170
Author(s):  
Luigi Doria
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Market Competition ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Management Quality ◽  
Quality Certification ◽  
Policy Fields ◽  
Contemporary Development ◽  
Private Actors ◽  
Sociological Studies

- Quality is one of the most relevant and, at the same time, ambiguous key-word of the contemporary socio-economic lexicon. The reference to quality discourses and technologies (such as those related to quality management, quality assurance, quality certification) ranges from market competition to organizational and managerial dynamics, from policy making to the new forms of governance. But, if quality constitutes itself as an eminent value for contemporary development, the treatment of the most diverse social domains (including, for example, administration, research, culture) in terms of quality is often assumed as the emblem of a disquieting trend towards control and rationalization. This contribution deals first with the analysis of the multiple meanings of the notion, paying particular attention to sociological studies and to the relationship between quality and the dimension of calculation. The attention focuses then on the role of the concept in the field of public policy and governance and, in particular, on quality as a sort of connecting device, which promotes processes of integration among different policy fields and networking phenomena involving public and private actors. The articles briefly hints, in the last part, at the root of the peculiar normativity of quality and at the enigmatic character of its current power.Keywords: Quality, networking, economic sociology, public policy.

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