Law Commons^™

When Desperate Patients Go To Court For Unproven Treatments - The Battle For Hospital Independence, Christopher Robertson, Margaret Houtz

Faculty Scholarship

As the Covid-19 pandemic wears on, patients have asked courts to compel hospitals to administer unproven therapies, with mixed legal results. Although talk radio hosts, politicians, and social media users have promoted various treatment approaches, they have given particular attention to ivermectin. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved ivermectin for use in humans for treating onchocerciasis (river blindness), intestinal strongyloidiasis, certain other parasitic worms, head lice, and skin conditions such as rosacea. Although this approval facilitates legal offlabel use for prophylaxis against or treatment of other conditions, both the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention …

A “License To Kale”—Free Speech Challenges To Occupational Licensing Of Nutrition And Dietetics, Taylor J. Newman, Angela E. Surrett

St. Mary's Law Journal

State licensing of medical professions has occurred for over a century. Recently, these licensure statutes have been subject to First Amendment challenges, alleging occupational licensure impermissibly restricts freedom of speech. This Comment addresses these free speech challenges, arguing occupational licensure statutes, at least for medical professions, only incidentally impacts free speech—if at all—by permissibly regulating medical professional conduct necessarily requiring speech. Within, the authors ultimately describe, demonstrate, and recommend a legal framework, the other factor/personal nexus approach. This approach helps determine the point at which speech becomes regulable professional conduct subject to licensing, utilizing the nutrition and dietetics profession, and …

Protecting Patients From Physicians Who Inflict Harm: New Legal Resources For State Medical Boards, Elizabeth Pendo, Tristan Mcintosh, Heidi A. Walsh, Kari Baldwin, James M. Dubois

Saint Louis University Journal of Health Law & Policy

State medical boards (SMBs) protect the public by ensuring that physicians uphold appropriate standards of care and ethical practice. Despite this clear purpose, egregious types of wrongdoing by physicians are alarmingly frequent, harmful, and under-reported. Even when egregious wrongdoing is reported to SMBs, it is unclear why SMBs sometimes fail to promptly remove seriously offending physicians from practice. Legal and policy tools that are targeted, well-informed, and actionable are urgently needed to help SMBs more effectively protect patients from egregious wrongdoing by physicians.

Past reviews of SMB performance have identified features of SMBs associated with higher rates of severe disciplinary …

1 Step Forward 2 Steps Back: The Transgender Individual Right To Access Optimal Health Care, Alexandre Rotondo-Medina

Journal of Race, Gender, and Ethnicity

No abstract provided.

The Early Impact Of The Affordable Care Act Upon Colorectal Cancer Screening Utilization In Florida, Aldenise P. Ewing, Laura Baum, Rosalyn Roker, Marlene Joannie Bewa, Tali Schneider, Claudia F. Parvanta, Clement K. Gwede, Cathy D. Meade, Dinorah Martinez Tyson

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Background: Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Although preventable and curable through screening, early detection and treatment, a lack of health insurance is a major obstacle to receiving colorectal cancer screening (CRCS). Despite the Affordable Care Act (ACA) increasing access to health insurance by mandating coverage of CRCS, disparities in utilization rates continue. Therefore, researchers sought to better understand ACA related facilitators and impediments that affect the utilization of CRCS and collect specific recommendations from healthcare professionals to increase screening utilization rates in Florida.

Methods: Researchers conducted in-depth interviews with …

Law School News: Rwu Law Professors File Emergency Covid-19 Lawsuit 04-12-2020, Michael M. Bowden

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.

No Treatment, No Hope, No Future: Decriminalization Of Heroin And Creation Of A Medical Dependent Standard, Alexander Mangano

Journal of Civil Rights and Economic Development

(Excerpt)

This Note will analyze the current ways heroin users are treated, stigmatized, and left with very little options upon recovery to support themselves and live a normal, productive life. Specifically, this Note will focus on how New York handles heroin users and their experiences with the criminal justice system. This Note proposes the decriminalization, not legalization, of only heroin use. To help addicts with recovery, diversionary courts and programs should be removed from the criminal justice system and instead act as a civil court. Additionally, the creation of a “medical dependent” classification will allow families to effectively force the …

Marijuana Issues For Voters: Studying Issues Us States Have Had With Legalizing Marijuana, Kody Kesler

WRIT: Journal of First-Year Writing

In the United States, the legalization of medical and recreational marijuana in individual states, rather than the whole nation, is a great example of states being “laboratories of democracy.” Legalizing marijuana in the states first is essential to deciding how to go about the issue on the national level, once Americans are ready for it. In most states where it is legal, employees can still be fired for having marijuana in their system, even if they have a medical recommendation. The drug tests that employers use don’t test for the recent use of drugs like marijuana, but for a part …

Bearing Hospital Tax Breaks: How Non-Profits Benefit From Your Surprise Medical Bills, Taylor N. Armstrong

Georgia State University Law Review

This Note addresses the growing issue of surprise medical bills and how the United States Tax Code can be used to prevent many patients from receiving these bills. Part I provides a background on surprise billing and market factors that have led to an increase in the bills as well as current legislative solutions to the problem. Part II analyzes the role that hospitals play in the insurance market, the current standards for nonprofit hospitals to receive tax exemption under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) § 501, and how these legal standards fall short of accomplishing the goals of the tax …

A Prescription For Charity Care: How National Medical Debt Ills Can Be Alleviated By Integrating State Financial Assistance Policies Into The Nonprofit Tax Exemption, Margarita Kutsin

Seattle University Law Review

Despite having the most expensive healthcare system in the world, the United States has been consistently ranked as having the worst system in terms of equity, efficiency, and healthcare outcomes among industrialized nations. The effects of these systemic issues are grounded in the patient experience as nearly forty-four percent of individuals have forgone recommended treatments and thirty-two percent have reported that they were unable to afford a prescription due to the high cost, according to a study conducted in 2018. Health is sacred, and financial circumstances should not determine the difference between treatment and illness, or life and death. “Financial …

The Opioid Crisis: The States' And Local Governments' Response To Bigpharma's Deception And Why The Supremacy Clause May Provide A Cloak For Opioid Manufacturers To Hide Behind, Tracie Childers

Barry Law Review

No abstract provided.

Identities In Critical Condition: The Urgent Need To Reevaluate The Investigation And Resolution Of Claims Of Medical Identity Theft, Stephanie Lindgren

Mitchell Hamline Law Review

No abstract provided.

Health Care Referrals Out Of The Shadows: Recognizing The Looming Threat Of The Texas Patient Solicitation Act And Other Illegal Remuneration Statutes, Trenton Brown

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

Networked Medical Devices: Finding A Legislative Solution To Guide Healthcare Into The Future, Louiza Dudin

Seattle University Law Review

This article discusses: (I) the current legal approaches to addressing cybersecurity in general, (II) the shortcomings of current legal approaches, (III) a proposal for legislation to narrow the scope of the Medical Device Amendments (MDA) preemption clause, and (IV) the benefits and shortcomings of the proposed legislation.

Marijuana Regulation And Federalism, John M. Greabe

Law Faculty Scholarship

[Excerpt] "Federal law makes the cultivation and use of marijuana illegal for all purposes. Yet, over the past two decades, 28 states plus the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana for medicinal purposes, and eight states plus the District of Columbia have legalized it for recreational purposes. Marijuana regulation thus provides a useful and timely example for exploring the ways in which the distribution of power between the federal government and the states can facilitate policy change."

Provider Liability And Medical Identity Theft: Can I Get Your (Insurance) Number?, Thomas Clifford

Northwestern Journal of Law & Social Policy

No abstract provided.

Surviving The Storm 2016: Employee Benefit Compliance & Employment Law Update, George Thompson, Brooks R. Magratten, Mark A. Pogue, Kelli Viera, Cecily Banks, Roger Williams University School Of Law

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Case No. 26 - Apls, New York Law School

Anonymous Closed Medical Liability Cases

Anonymous Closed Medical Liability Case - APLS

Prep And Our Youth: Implications In Law And Policy, Jason Potter Burda

Faculty Publications

Truvada®, an antiretroviral medication originally approved to treat HIV, is the first drug to receive FDA approval for use by HIV-negative individuals to actually prevent infection. The prophylactic use of an antiretroviral such as Truvada is a pharmacological prevention method called “HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis” (or “PrEP”). With an efficacy of over ninety percent when used as prescribed, Truvada as PrEP has been embraced by the public health community, and implementation is under way across the United States. Truvada as PrEP is currently indicated for adult use only, but it may also be prescribed off-label to at-risk youth. In this Article, …

Use Of Facial Recognition Technology For Medical Purposes: Balancing Privacy With Innovation, Seema Mohapatra

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Remedies For Detainees: The Impact Of The Ninth Circuit's Decision On Medical Negligence Cases, Arzoo Rajani

University of Massachusetts Law Review

This comment examines the impact of the Ninth Circuit‘s holding in medical neglect cases and whether the Second Circuit made an error. To examine this issue, it must first be understood what the factual and legal background is concerning each case, the detainee‘s medical rights and the types of actions they can bring against government employees. After examining the law, the Second Circuit‘s holding is then compared with the Ninth Circuit‘s holding. Finally, this comment argues why the Supreme Court should affirm the Ninth Circuit‘s holding.

The Impact Of Disability: A Comparative Approach To Medical Resource Allocation In Public Health Emergencies, Katie Hanschke, Leslie E. Wolf, Wendy F. Hensel

Saint Louis University Journal of Health Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Disability Cultural Competence In The Medical Profession, Mary Crossley

Saint Louis University Journal of Health Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Remodeling Federal Medical Malpractice Act: A Possible Improvement To The Affordable Care Act, Nancy Kubasek, Tiffany Durham

Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review

During the debates about healthcare reform, the Congressional Budget Office found that federal medical liability reform could drastically reduce federal budget deficits, yet political and legal scholars could not reach agreement about the best way for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to provide such reform. Instead, provisions were made to fund state level demonstration projects. The law that is considered one of the most successful models to date of conventional tort reform is the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act of California. This Article exams that legislation and discusses how we might use what can be learned from …

Medical Peer Review, Antitrust, And The Effect Of Statutory Reform, Charity Scott

Charity Scott

No abstract provided.

Cgmp Violations Should Not Be Used As A Basis For Fca Actions Absent Fraud, Kyle Faget

Seattle University Law Review

Since Congress amended the False Claims Act (FCA) in 1986, the statute has evolved into a seemingly boundless weapon for enforcing other statutes and regulations applicable to every industry that accepts any form of government funding. Use of the FCA by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and by private citizens bringing actions on behalf of the U.S. government to enforce other statutes and regulations is particularly evident in the field of health care. The FCA has been utilized in actions where the allegations include off-label promotion of drugs, kickbacks, and violations of current good manufacturing practices (cGMPs) by linking the …

Ironic Simplicity: Why Shaken Baby Syndrome Misdiagnoses Should Result In Automatic Reimbursement For The Wrongly Accused, Jay Simmons

Seattle University Law Review

Shaken baby syndrome (SBS)’s shortcomings include the debatable science behind SBS theory and diagnosis—the questioning of which has grown more vociferous—and the arguably biased, discriminatory treatment of the accused. Professor Deborah Tuerkheimer notes that the evolving SBS skepticism and contentious debate has resulted in "chaos" in many SBS adjudications and within the medical and biomechanical fields, with the same SBS proponents and opponents continually crusading for and clashing over their beliefs. The issues surrounding the medical and biomechanical components of SBS diagnoses have been repeatedly examined and discussed, and are not the focus of this Note. This Note recounts those …

Mobile Medical App Regulation: Preventing A Pandemic Of “Mobilechondriacs”, Nathaniel R. Carroll

Saint Louis University Journal of Health Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

With Liberty And Access For Some: The Aca's Disconnect For Women's Health, Nicole Huberfeld

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

This Article will scrutinize the separation of abortion from other aspects of women's health through the vehicle of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). Part I will examine briefly why the fragmented nature of American healthcare has facilitated the separation of abortion from women's health, despite the fact that abortion is a medically necessary procedure for many women. To that end, this Part will explore the disjointed history of access to medicine juxtaposed against the strangely non-woman-centric nature of the fundamental rights at play in reproductive health. Part II will provide an overview of the ACA to explain …

Fatal Medical Negligence And Missouri’S Perverse Incentive, Daniel J. Sheffner

Saint Louis University Journal of Health Law & Policy

No abstract provided.