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Health Theater, Govind Persad

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

"Security theater" has been defined as an effort to "provide the feeling of security instead of the reality. " The concept of security theater has been discussed in both the popular press and academic literature, but has not yet entered health law. This project suggests that a parallel category of "health theater" picks out a set ofpractices in medical screening and health care delivery that provide a mere simulacrum ofprotection against medical risk, rather than providing genuine medical benefit. Part I summarizes some of the distinctive advantages and disadvantages of health and security theater. Like security theater, health theater frequently …