Health Law and Policy Commons^™

Reducing Harm: The Legal Viability Of Supervised Consumption Sites In Georgia, Kathleen Kassa

Georgia State University Law Review

Every five minutes in the United States, someone dies from a drug overdose. This public health crisis, referred to as the opioid epidemic, caused the federal government and many states and localities to issue public health emergency declarations. Despite billions of dollars in funding and response at every level of government, overdoses continue to increase.

The complexity of addiction prevention and treatment, socioeconomic inequalities, and the stigmatization of drug use make the opioid crisis difficult to solve. The severity of the epidemic led many jurisdictions to adopt once-controversial harm reduction approaches aimed at reducing the stigma and negative impacts of …

Torts: Covid-19 Pandemic Business Safety Act & Executive Order By The Governor Designating Auxiliary Management Workers And Emergency Management Activities, Angelena Velaj, Troy Viger

Georgia State University Law Review

The Executive Order expanded immunity from liability for volunteer health care workers as emergency management workers performing emergency management activities. The Order was not limited to only COVID-19-related activities. When the legislature reconvened, legislators passed the Georgia COVID-19 Pandemic Business Safety Act, which provided liability limitation to businesses against tort claims arising from the pandemic.

Preemption: Executive Order By The Governor To Ensure A Safe & Healthy Georgia, Marisa P. Ahlzadeh, Fanny Chac

Georgia State University Law Review

The doctrine of preemption expresses the idea that “a higher authority of law will displace a lower authority of law when the two authorities come into conflict.” Preemption exists on both the federal and state level. According to the Georgia Constitution, local laws are permissible if they do not conflict with the state law on the subject. During a Public Health State of Emergency, the Governor of Georgia maintains certain expanded powers to take necessary action for the health and safety of the public. On April 2, 2020, Governor Brian Kemp (R) used these expanded powers to enact an Executive …

Health Insurance Portability And Accountability Act Of 1996: Health & Public Welfare, Erin L. Hayes, Kathryn A. Vance

Georgia State University Law Review

The Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information (“Privacy Rule”) establish a standard for the use and protection of individuals’ health information and apply to certain covered entities or their business associates. Covered entities may only disclose an individual’s protected health information in limited situations. Covered entities or individuals that fail to comply with the Privacy Rule standards may be subject to civil or criminal penalties.

Bioethics: Ethical Considerations Of Ventilator Triage During A Pandemic, Susannah J. Gleason, William J. Keegan

Georgia State University Law Review

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals across the country faced unprecedented volumes of patients seeking treatment related to the respiratory complications of the virus. As a result, states were forced to reassess existing scarce resource allocation guidelines to appropriately accommodate the high demand. This Peach Sheet analyzes the ethical considerations implicated in enacting and following these guidelines when treating patients, specifically in the context of ventilator triage in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Crimes And Offenses: Proposed Constitutional Carry Act Of 2019 & Executive Order By The Governor Temporarily Extending Renewal Requirements For Weapons Carry Licenses, Kristin Harripaul, Briana A. James

Georgia State University Law Review

In March 2020, Governor Brian Kemp (R) issued an Executive Order declaring a Public Health State of Emergency due to COVID-19. The Supreme Court of Georgia also issued a Judicial Order declaring a Statewide Judicial Emergency. The Council of Probate Court Judges subsequently characterized the processing of weapons carry licenses as non-essential and temporarily suspended license issuances to limit the spread of COVID-19. HB 2 would have eliminated the license requirement and the need for probate judges to process applications. However, HB 2 never received a hearing before the 2019–20 legislative session ended. Gun rights advocates called on Governor Kemp …

Elections: Elections And Primaries Through The Pandemic, Joseph M. Brickman, Logan D. Kirkes

Georgia State University Law Review

The 2020 election cycle was all but normal. Due to certain health concerns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, Georgia delayed its primary election three months from March to June and summarily mailed absentee ballot request forms to all active, registered voters. From presidential social media postings to a federal lawsuit, debate ensued over the widespread usage of absentee ballots, their overall effectiveness and security, who would receive request forms, and whether postage requirements qualified as an impermissible poll tax. To further compound these uncertainties, Georgia legislators, who are not permitted to fundraise or campaign during the forty-day legislative session, had …

Mandatory Quarantine: Administrative Order By The Georgia Department Of Public Health For Public Health Control Measures: Isolation Protocol, Matthew C. Daigle, Carissa L. Lavin

Georgia State University Law Review

The Administrative Order for Public Health Control Measures and its subsequent amendments outlined the Isolation and Quarantine Protocols for individuals who either tested positive for COVID-19 or were suspected of COVID-19 infection based on symptoms or prolonged exposure to the virus.

Forced Business Closures: Executive Orders By The Governor Closing Private Businesses, Baylee A. Culverhouse, Alexa R. Martin

Georgia State University Law Review

Governor Brian Kemp (R) issued Executive Orders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic that required businesses to close in an effort to limit the spread of the virus. Business owners often challenged those forced business closures as unconstitutional or as exceeding the State’s police power, and those challenges were met with varying degrees of success.

Public Health State Of Emergency: Executive Order By The Governor Declaring A Public Health State Of Emergency, Rebecca Hu, Ellen Y. Min

Georgia State University Law Review

The Executive Order primarily functions to enumerate the Governor’s emergency powers during a Public Health State of Emergency. The Executive Order allows for the Governor to assist health and emergency management officials by deploying available resources for the mitigation and treatment of COVID-19 within Georgia.

First Amendment: Executive Order By The Governor Limiting Large Gatherings Statewide, Alex N. Estroff, Boris W. Gautier

Georgia State University Law Review

Beginning in March 2020, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp (R) issued a series of Executive Orders addressing the State’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Included in these Orders was a prohibition on large groups of people gathering in a single location. Though an effective means of curtailing the virus’s rapid transmission, this specific provision became a source of controversy for groups who believed such a prohibition infringed upon their First Amendment rights.

Hb 282 - Preservation Of Sexual Assault Evidence, Rebecca A. Dickinson, Alessandra T. Palazzolo

Georgia State University Law Review

This Act extends the time that law enforcement agencies are required to preserve certain evidence of sexual assault. Physical evidence of a reported sexual assault will be preserved for fifty years, and if there is an arrest, for thirty years from the date of arrest or seven years from the sentence’s completion.

Sb 18 - Direct Primary Care, Valentin H. Dubuis, Juliana Mesa

Georgia State University Law Review

This legislation allows physicians to offer specified care for a specific time pursuant to a fixed fee. The physician cannot require more than one year’s payment upfront, and the agreement has to be terminable by either party with thirty days’ notice. Physicians do not have to provide care if the fee has not been paid or the patient has committed fraud, failed to adhere to treatment, or is in physical danger.

Hb 481 - Heartbeat Bill, Michael G. Foo, Taylor L. Lin

Georgia State University Law Review

The Act adds an unborn child with a detectable human heartbeat to the definition of a natural person and includes such unborn child in state population counts. The Act defines abortion, prescribes when abortions may be performed, provides exceptions to abortion performance limitations, establishes requirements for performing an abortion, and provides for a right of action, damages, and affirmative defenses. The Act permits alimony and child support payments starting when an unborn child has a detectable human heartbeat. Parents have the right to recover the full value of a child’s life when a detectable human heartbeat exists. The Act requires …

Whose Sperm Is It Anyways In The Wild, Wild West Of The Fertility Industry?, Tatiana E. Posada

Georgia State University Law Review

Imagine a couple that is unable to conceive a child naturally. Luckily, they had the money and resources available to them to conceive a child through assisted reproductive technology (ART), so they decided to start their family through the use of intrauterine insemination. They selected a sperm bank and began the arduous process of selecting a sperm donor who fit the desired traits and characteristics for their child. The sperm bank matched them with an anonymous donor, Donor 9623, and assured the couple that the donor was “a healthy male with an IQ of 160, a bachelor’s of science in …

Don’T Let The Bed Bugs Bill: Landlord Liability For Bed Bug Infestations In Georgia, Megan M. Harrison

Georgia State University Law Review

Although the historical relationship between bed bugs and humans dates back to ancient Egypt, the common bed bug, or Cimex lectularius, vanished from the beds of Americans around World War II. In the late 1990s, however, our bloodsucking bedfellows returned. Bed bug infestations are a growing public health issue. Bed bugs are now found in all fifty states, with populations in five states reaching epidemic levels. Both the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) consider bed bugs a “pest of significant public health importance."

Despite their name, bed bugs are not limited to …

Workin’ 9:00–5:00 For Nine Months: Assessing Pregnancy Discrimination Laws In Georgia, Kaitlyn Pettet

Georgia State University Law Review

As demonstrated in this Note, there is still a considerable way to go before women are no longer forced to choose between pregnancy and keeping their career. Allegations of pregnancy discrimination in the workplace are also on the rise.

In 1997, 4,000 plaintiffs filed complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). By 2011, that number rose to 5,800. The EEOC won significant damages in pregnancy discrimination cases, demonstrating a greater tendency towards discrimination in the workplace. Additionally, this rise in claims and awards caught the attention of the nation’s media, placing new emphasis on the treatment of pregnant women …

Virginia Supreme Court Endorses Medical Confidentiality Claim, Paul A. Lombardo

Faculty Publications By Year

No abstract provided.

Health Care Confidentiality: Current Virginia Law And A Proposal For Legislation, Paul A. Lombardo

Faculty Publications By Year

No abstract provided.

Turning Back The Clock On Sexual Abuse Of Children: Amending Virginia's Statute Of Limitations, Paul A. Lombardo

Faculty Publications By Year

No abstract provided.

Involuntary Sterilization In Virginia: From Buck V. Bell To Poe V. Lynchburg, Paul A. Lombardo

Faculty Publications By Year

No abstract provided.