Law Commons^™

Periods For Profit And The Rise Of Menstrual Surveillance, Michele E. Gilman

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Menstruation is being monetized and surveilled, with the voluntary participation of millions of women. Thousands of downloadable apps promise to help women monitor their periods and manage their fertility. These apps are part of the broader, multi-billion dollar, Femtech industry, which sells technology to help women understand and improve their health. Femtech is marketed with the language of female autonomy and feminist empowerment. Despite this rhetoric, Femtech is part of a broader business strategy of data extraction, in which companies are extracting people’s personal data for profit, typically without their knowledge or meaningful consent. Femtech can oppress menstruators in several …

Medicaid Maximization And Diversion: Illusory State Practices That Convert Federal Aid Into General State Revenue, Daniel L. Hatcher

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For years, states have been using illusory schemes to maximize federal aid intended for Medicaid services-and then often diverting some or all of the resulting funds to other use. And states have help. Private revenue maximization consultants are hired by states to increase Medicaid claims, often for a contingency fee. We do not know the exact amount of federal Medicaid funds that has been diverted to state revenue and private profit each year, but it is in the billions.

The states' revenue strategies take advantage of the matching-grant structure of the Medicaid program. When state funds are spent on eligible …

En-Gendering Economic Inequality, Michele E. Gilman

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We live in an era of growing economic inequality. Luminaries ranging from the President to the Pope to economist Thomas Piketty in his bestselling book Capital in the Twenty- First Century have raised alarms about the disparity between the haves and the have-nots. Overlooked, however, in these important discussions is the reality that economic inequality is not a uniform experience; rather, its effects fall more harshly on women and minorities. With regard to gender, American women have higher rates of poverty and get paid less than comparable men, and their workplace participation rates are falling. Yet economic inequality is neither …

Book Review: Body Banking From The Bench To The Bedside, Natalie Ram

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How much is a kidney worth? An ounce of breast milk? Genetic material from an individual facing a Parkinson's diagnosis? In today's America, it depends on who is selling. One might think that such body products are beyond value or that their value depends on the individual characteristics of the supplier. But under existing American law and practices, what matters more is whether the seller is also the supplier of that body product, or whether the seller is another entity, such as a pharmaceutical company, hospital, or biobanker.

The Four Stages Of Youth Sports Tbi Policymaking: Engagement, Enactment, Research, And Reform, Hosea H. Harvey, Dionne L. Koller, Kerri M. Lowrey

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This article advances, for the first time, a framework for situating public health law interventions as occurring in a predictable four-stage process. In this article, written in connection with our panel at the Public Health Law Research Conference (2014), we briefly apply this four-stage framework to youth sports TBI laws, and conclude that public health lawmaking in this area is consistent with prior high-visibility public health law interventions.

Non-Price Competition In “Substitute" Drugs: The Ftc's Blind Spot, Gregory Dolin

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As the recent case of United States v. Lundbeck illustrates, the Federal Trade Commission’s lack of knowledge in medical and pharmacological sciences affects its evaluation of transactions between medical and pharmaceutical companies that involve transfers of rights to manufacture or sell drugs, causing the agency to object to such transactions without solid basis for doing so. This article argues that in order to properly define a pharmaceutical market, one must not just consider the condition that competing drugs are meant to treat, but also take into account whether there are “off-label” drugs that are used to treat a relevant condition, …

Response To "Pervasive Sequence Patents Cover The Entire Human Genome", Shine Tu, Christopher M. Holman, Adam Mossoff, Ted M. Sichelman, Michael Risch, Jorge L. Contreras, Yaniv Heled, Gregory Dolin, Lee Petherbridge

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In a widely reported article by Jeffrey Rosenfeld and Christopher Mason published in Genome Medicine, significant misstatements were made, because the authors did not sufficiently review the claims – which define the legal scope of a patent – in the patents they analyzed. Specifically, the authors do not provide an adequate basis for their assertion that 41% of the genes in the human genome have been claimed.

The Dangers Of Psychotropic Medication For Mentally Ill Children: Where Is The Child’S Voice In Consenting To Medication? An Empirical Study, Donald H. Stone

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When a child with a mental illness is being prescribed psychotropic medication. who decides whether the child should take the medication — the parent or the child? What if the child is sixteen years of age? What if the child is in foster care: Should the parent or social service agency decide? Prior to administering psychotropic medication, what specific information should be provided to the person authorized to consent on behalf of the child? Should children be permitted to refuse psychotropic medications? If so, at what age should a child he able to refuse such medication What procedures should be …

Forgotten Fathers, Daniel L. Hatcher

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Poor fathers like John are largely forgotten, written off as a subset of the unworthy poor. These fathers struggle with poverty – often with near hopelessness – within multiple systems in which they are either entangled or overlooked, such as child-support and welfare programs, family courts, the criminal justice system, housing programs, and the healthcare, education, and foster-care systems. For these impoverished fathers, the “end of men” is often not simply a question for purposes of discussion but a fact that is all too real. In the instances in which poor fathers are not forgotten, they are targeted as causes …

Exclusivity Without Patents: The New Frontier Of Fda Regulation For Genetic Materials, Gregory Dolin

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Over the last twenty years, the legal and scientific academic communities have been embroiled in a debate about the patent eligibility of genetic materials. The stakes for both sides could not be higher. On one hand are the potential multi-billion dollar profits on the fruits of research (from newly discovered genes), and on the other is scientists' ability to continue and expand research into the human genome to improve patients' access to affordable diagnostic and therapeutic modalities. This debate is currently pending before the Supreme Court, which is considering a petition for certiorari in Ass'n for Molecular Pathology v. U.S. …

A Visual Guide To Nfib V. Sebelius, Colin Starger

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Though Chief Justice Roberts ultimately provided the fifth vote upholding the Affordable Care Act (ACA) under the Tax Power, his was also one of five votes finding the ACA exceeded Congress’ power under the Commerce Clause.

The doctrinal basis for Roberts’ Commerce Clause analysis was hotly contested. While Roberts argued that the ACA’s purported exercise of Commerce power “finds no support in our precedent,” Justice Ginsburg accused the Chief Justice of failing to “evaluat[e] the constitutionality of the minimum coverage provision in the manner established by our precedents.”

These diametrically opposed perspectives on “precedent” might prompt observers to ask whether …

Confine Is Fine: Have The Non-Dangerous Mentally Ill Lost Their Right To Liberty? An Empirical Study To Unravel The Psychiatrist’S Crystal Ball, Donald H. Stone

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This Article will examine the reverse trend in civil commitment laws in the wake of recent tragedies and discuss the effect of broader civil commitment standards on the care and treatment of the mentally ill. The 2007 Virginia Tech shooting, the 2011 shooting of Congresswoman Giffords, and the 2012 Aurora movie theatre shooting have spurred fierce debates about the dangerousness of mentally ill and serve as cautionary tale about what happens when warning signs go unnoticed and opportunities for early intervention missed. This piece will explore the misconception about the role medication and inpatient civil commitments should play in prevention …

Reverse Settlements As Patent Invalidity Signals, Gregory Dolin

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Over the last decade a new type of settlements, commonly referred to as “reversed payment settlements” or simply “reverse settlements,” emerged in litigation over patents covering pharmaceutical products. What differentiates these new settlements from their traditional counterparts is that whereas traditionally, the alleged trespasser on someone else's rights pays the rights-holder to settle the litigation, in these new settlements it is the rights holder that pays the alleged trespasser. These settlements are a direct consequence of the various incentives provided by the Hatch-Waxman Act - an Act designed to increase competition between brand name and generic manufactures of pharmaceutical products. …

A Defense Of Embryonic Stem Cell Research, Gregory Dolin

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On November 21, 2007, sensational scientific developments were reported by major newspapers, both in the United States and abroad. The media reported a new breakthrough in the area of stem cell research. According to two articles published in Science and Cell (both highly respected scientific journals), two teams of scientists were able to “reprogram” adult stem cells into embryonic stem cells, without actually having to experiment on embryos. The discovery was immediately hailed by the White House and other opponents of embryonic stem cell research. The New York Times gushed that the “stem cell wars” may be at an end. …

Medical Hope, Legal Pitfalls: Potential Legal Issues In The Emerging Field Of Oncofertility, Gregory Dolin, Dorothy E. Roberts, Lina M. Rodriguez, Teresa K. Woodruff

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The article will begin its discussion by identifying the values at stake in the field of oncofertility. These values include the constitutional protection of the rights of women and minors to bear children and to use reproduction-assisting technologies, as well as the feminist critique of gendered expectations that may pressure women to use these technologies.

Part III will focus on the medical options of oncofertility. It will also discuss some conditions that may lead otherwise fertile and young patients to lose their ability to bear children as a side-effect of necessary medical treatment. The article will then proceed to discuss …

The Game Of Pleasant Diversion: Can We Level The Playing Field For The Disabled Athlete And Maintain The National Pastime, In The Aftermath Of Pga Tour, Inc. V. Martin: An Empirical Study Of The Disabled Athlete, Donald H. Stone

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Kenny Walker, a deaf football player; Jim Abbott, a one-handed professional baseball player; Tom Dempsey, a physically disabled professional football kicker; Brad Doty, a paralyzed auto racer; and Nick Ackerman, a wrestler with amputated legs, have all competed at the highest level of sports. Persons with mental illness, individuals who are blind, and students with hearing impairments are seeking an opportunity to compete in fair competition with their non-disabled competitors. Can this occur in a fair, open, and just manner between competing athletes?

Does the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA"), the landmark civil rights act protecting an individual …

What Do Exit Polls And Flu Vaccine Shortages Have In Common?, Albert A. Foer, Robert H. Lande, F.M. Scherer

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What do exit polls and flu vaccine shortages have in common? Both involve situations where society has come to rely excessively on too few entities. When even one company makes a mistake society can suffer significantly. This short piece advocates that we abandon our almost laissez faire tolerence towards high concentration, and rely upon competition, rather than on monopoly or a small number of producers.

Licensing Health Care Professionals: Has The United States Outlived The Need For Medical Licensure?, Gregory Dolin

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With an expanding market for what is now known as "complimentary and alternative" medicine (CAM), states are increasingly facing the issue of who can and who should be allowed to practice medicine. Of necessity, this question also concerns whom patients may see to treat their ailments.

This paper will argue that the struggle to define who is and who is not licensed to practice medicine is rather fruitless and will always leave patients with less choice than they desire. Part II will review the history of licensure in the United States. Parts III and IV will focus on benefits and …

Time To Enter A "Do Not Resuscitate" Order On The National Resident Matching Program's Chart, Gregory Dolin

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This article focuses on the NRMP system and argues that the process is neither efficient nor pro-competitive. This article argues that Congress erred in bestowing an antitrust exemption on the NRMP and the participating institutions.

This article suggests that although the system may have been necessary to check the problem of early recruiting that was pervasive in the 1950s (similar to the one that plagued the federal judiciary until just two years ago), the system has outlived its usefulness. Part II will explain the Match's history and function and will discuss how the system makes participation in the Match inevitable …

Physician Liability And Managed Care: A Philosophical Perspective, Dionne L. Koller

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Despite the emergence of managed health care and the resulting dramatic change in the role of the third-party payer in the physician-patient relationship, the liability standards applied to physicians largely have remained unchanged. This has created a tension between physicians' legal and ethical obligations, and the requirements imposed on the physician by managed health care. Specifically, the issue confronts the physician in the context of malpractice liability. Managed Care Organizations impose a significant amount of control over the way physicians practice medicine, often forcing physicians to ration care. Notwithstanding any beneficial cost savings that might result, this approach subjects the …

A Healer Or An Executioner: The Proper Role Of A Psychiatrist In A Criminal Justice System, Gregory Dolin

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This article argues that despite the benefits of ridding the criminal justice system of some uncertainty and ignorance with respect to mental health issues, the very close involvement of psychiatrists in the criminal justice system as practiced in the United States is not only illogical and bad policy, but also unethical from the viewpoint of medical ethics. Part II of this article will lay the groundwork for the argument by discussing the history of the insanity defense, and of science's involvement with criminal justice; while Part III, will look into the association of science and the administration of justice in …

Giving A Voice To The Silent Mentally Ill Client: An Empirical Study Of The Role Of Counsel In The Civil Commitment Hearing, Donald H. Stone

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In the civil commitment arena, where a mentally ill person is allegedly a danger to the life or safety of themselves or of others and in need of in-patient care or treatment, there are two groups assigned to protect the people: one, the hospital presenter, who is responsible for investigating and presenting evidence and testimony at a hearing to secure admission to a psychiatric facility as an involuntary patient, the other, the lawyer, who represents and defends the allegedly mentally ill person from such involuntary civil commitment confinement. These are their stories.

The attorney representing a mentally ill client at …

Exploitation Of The Elite: A Case For Physician Unionization, Dionne L. Koller

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Our intuition tells us that physicians are elites, and therefore they cannot be exploited. Relying on this intuition, we adopt policies which attempt to provide a health care system that gives first-quality care, at the lowest prices, delivered through a “free-market” system. As the key gatekeepers to health care, physicians are thus caught in the middle. Top-notch American health care costs money and for-profit MCOs must watch their bottom line. Rationing, therefore, is key. The issue is, assuming we have decided that free-market health care is the solution, how much should physicians have to sacrifice in the name of the …

Government As God: An Update On Federal Intervention In The Treatment Of Critically Ill Newborns, Dionne L. Koller

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Whether a severely impaired or critically ill infant should receive lifesaving, and sometimes extraordinary, medical treatment, or be allowed to die, is hotly debated. The issue initially garnered public attention in 1982, when an infant who was born with Down's Syndrome, “Baby Doe,” was allowed to die from a correctable birth defect. Following this, the federal government took a lead role in determining the fate of critically ill newborns. In the meantime, doctors, philosophers, and others have debated whether federal interference in this area is appropriate.

This essay will bring the reader up to date on the “Baby Doe” issue …

The Benefits Of Voluntary Inpatient Psychiatric Hospitalization: Myth Or Reality?, Donald H. Stone

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Throughout the United States, mentally ill persons are confined against their will in psychiatric hospitals as a result of being accused of dangerous behavior. Some are committed involuntarily by a judge after an administrative hearing during which they are afforded legal representation, a right to be present, and important due process protections, including the right to cross-examine witnesses and present one's own witnesses. However, a significant number of individuals, initially confined in psychiatric institutions for allegedly posing a danger to life or safety, never see an impartial judge, lawyer, or even a family member. These mentally ill individuals are not …

Drug Treatment Courts: Evolution, Evaluation, And Future Directions, Gloria Danziger, Jeffrey Kuhn

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No abstract provided.

Managed Care And Managed Sentencing — A Tale Of Two Systems, Ronald Weich

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The daily injustices mount. The front line professionals who administer the system cry out for more discretion to depart from the rigid rules that bind them, Congress finally hears their call, and is poised to enact sweeping reforms.

Are improvements in federal sentencing law on the way? Probably not in the near future. But the new Congress will surely take up proposals to regulate the managed health care industry, and the impending debate over a proposed "Patients' Bill of Rights" law offers important lessons for federal sentencing policy.

At first blush, sentencing reform and health care reform have about as …

Legal Protection For Victims Of Domestic Violence: A Guide For The Treating Physician, Jane C. Murphy

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No abstract provided.

Abortion Reform, Richard D. Lamm, Steven A.G. Davison

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No abstract provided.