About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

99 Colum. L. Rev. 59 (1999)
The Law and the Public's Health: A Study of Infectious Disease Law in the United States

handle is hein.journals/clr99 and id is 93 raw text is: THE LAW AND THE PUBLIC'S HEALTH: A STUDY OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE LAW IN THE UNITED STATES Lawrence 0. Gostin,* Scott Burris,** and Zita Lazzarini*** Law plays crucial roles in the field of public health, from defining the power and jurisdiction of health agencies, to influencing the social norms that shape individual behavior. Despite its importance, public health law has been neglected. Over a decade ago, the Institute of Medicine issued a report lamenting the state of public health adminstration, generally, and calling, in particular, for a revision of public health statutes. The Article examines the current state of public health law. To help create the conditions in which people can be healthy, public health law must reflect an understanding of how public health agencies work to promote health, as well as the political and social contexts in which these * Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center; Professor of Law and Public Health, the Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health; Co-Director, Georgetown/Johns Hopkins Program on Law and Public Health; Member, Advisory Committee on HIV and Sexually Transmitted Disease Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); Member, Board on Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Institute of Medicine (IOM), National Academy of Sciences; B.A., State University of New York at Brockport; J.D., Duke University; LL.D. (Hon.), State University of New York. This Article does not necessarily reflect the views of the CDC or the IOM. ** Professor, Temple University School of Law; B.A., Washington University; J.D., Yale Law School. *** Assistant Professor & Director of the Program in Medical Humanities, Health Law and Ethics, University of Connecticut Health Center; Lecturer on Law, Harvard School of Public Health; B.A., University of California at Berkeley; J.D., University of California, Hastings College of the Law; M.P.H., Harvard School of Public Health. This Article grew out of the Communicable Disease Law Project sponsored by the Milbank Memorial Fund. The Project involved multiple steps and the substantial talent and energy of many individuals. The Project entailed conducting a state survey of communicable disease law, commissioning background papers, and convening an advisory panel of public health experts to review and discuss the survey results and background materials. The advisory panel, assembled to reflect the richness and diversity of the public health community, included physicians, public health officials, legislators, historians, lawyers, administrators, advocates, and scholars (and many panelists who occupy more than one role). The following experts contributed significantly to the Communicable Disease Law Project: Mark Barnes, James W. Curran, Ruth Faden, Sev S. Fluss, Kristine M. Gebbie, Frank P. Grad, Thomas A. LaVeist, Jonathan M. Mann, Eugene W. Matthews, Verla S. Neslund, Terry O'Brien, Wendy Parmet, William L. Roper, Leonard S. Rubenstein, Ciro V. Sumaya, and Bailus Walker. The Project's final tasks consisted of formulating recommendations for state law reform and compiling a report. See Lawrence 0. Gostin, Scott Burris, & Zita Lazzarini, Improving State Law To Prevent and Treat Infectious Disease 6 (1998). The Project also benefited from our colleagues' comments during faculty colloquia at Georgetown and Temple law schools. The authors are grateful for the research assistance provided by James Hodge, Jr. (who directed the research team), Lance Gable, Barbara Looney, Kathleen Maguire, Mary Senoo, and Paul Varki. We are particularly indebted to Daniel Fox, President of the Milbank Memorial Fund, for his extraordinary contributions to this Project.

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most