Law Commons^™

Dangerous Diagnoses, Risky Assumptions, And The Failed Experiment Of "Sexually Violent Predator" Commitment, Deirdre M. Smith

Faculty Publications

In its 1997 opinion, Kansas v. Hendricks, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a law that reflected a new model of civil commitment. The targets of this new commitment law were dubbed “Sexually Violent Predators” (SVPs), and the Court upheld indefinite detention of these individuals on the assumption that there is a psychiatrically distinct class of individuals who, unlike typical recidivists, have a mental condition that impairs their ability to refrain from violent sexual behavior. And, more specifically, the Court assumed that the justice system could reliably identify the true “predators,” those for whom this unusual and extraordinary deprivation of liberty …

When Condoms Fail: Making Room Under The Aca Blanket For Prep Hiv Prevention, Jason Potter Burda

Faculty Publications

Given the alarming upward trend in HIV infection rates and the downward trend in condom usage, we need a new approach to HIV prevention in the United States. One such approach, HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (commonly known as “PrEP”), has the potential to significantly reduce HIV incidence. The FDA recently approved a daily dose of Truvada® — an antiretroviral drug that suppresses the virus in HIV-positive individuals — for daily use by high-risk HIV-negative individuals to prevent infection. Despite an effectiveness above ninety percent and significant regulatory momentum, this pharmacological prevention modality has proven difficult to implement. In this Article, I …

Modernizing The Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act To Harmonize With The Affordable Care Act To Improve Equality, Quality And Cost Of Emergency Care, Katharine A. Van Tassel

Faculty Publications

The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) is a federal statute passed almost 30 years ago which was designed to ensure equal access to emergency treatment and to halt the practice of “patient dumping.” Patient dumping is a situation where some patients—typically uninsured, disabled, and minority individuals—receive inferior emergency medical care or are denied emergency medical treatment altogether. The goal of EMTALA is to ensure that everyone coming to the emergency room will receive equal care.

Unfortunately, despite EMTALA, the practice of patient dumping has continued to this day. The most recent case in the news is the …

Legal Preparedness And Ebola Vaccines, Sam F. Halabi, John T. Monahan

Faculty Publications

On Dec 9, 2014, US Secretary of Health and Human Services Sylvia Burwell issued a declaration under the US Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act to provide immunity from legal claims in the USA related to manufacturing, testing, development, distribution, and administration of three candidate Ebola vaccines except in instances of willful misconduct. Although progress in combating Ebola in west Africa has shifted public attention away from vaccine development and deployment, we should not forget that the management of legal liabilities related to vaccines has been an important subject of discussion between national governments, international organizations, vaccine manufacturers, and other …

Sharing The Burden Of Ebola Vaccine Related Adverse Events, Sam F. Halabi, John Monahan

Faculty Publications

Based upon past experience with other vaccines, the proposed administration of Ebola vaccines (once testing has been completed) will inevitably result in at least some adverse events that will give rise to legal liabilities of only crudely estimable magnitude at this time. Manufacturers, beneficiary governments (e.g., Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone), supporting governments (e.g. U.S., U.K.), individuals suffering adverse events, and populations benefiting from widespread vaccination against the Ebola virus all have a shared interest in recognizing, understanding, and managing potential liability as effectively as possible within the framework of a global public health response. There are multiple options available to …