Law Commons^™

Is The United States Prepared For Ebola?, Lawrence O. Gostin, James G. Hodge Jr., Scott Burris

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

The West African Ebola epidemic is a humanitarian crisis and a threat to international security. It is not surprising that isolated cases have emerged in Europe and North America, but a large outbreak in the United States, with its advanced health system, is unlikely. Yet the handling of the first domestically diagnosed Ebola case in Dallas, Texas, raised concerns about national public health preparedness. What were the critical health system vulnerabilities revealed in Dallas, and how can the country respond more effectively to novel diseases in a globalized world?

Ebola: A Crisis In Global Health Leadership, Lawrence O. Gostin, Eric A. Friedman

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

At the core of the present Ebola crisis in West Africa is a lack of global health leadership. WHO should be the global health leader, following its constitutional charge, yet it is significantly under-resourced, having a direct effect on its rapid response capacity. The Organization's response to this crisis has been constantly behind, from low funding appeals to its delay in declaring this outbreak to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern under the binding International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR). The IHR themselves have proven insufficient, as countries have failed to cooperate in building the public health capacities that …

Public Health In The Age Of Ebola In West Africa, Michael T. Osterholm, Kristine A. Moore, Lawrence O. Gostin

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

The Ebola epidemic, with its fast-growing toll and real potential for spreading into much of Africa, including major cities, has the makings of a “Black Swan” event. Such events, using the term coined by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, are: 1) unpredictable, outside the realm of regular expectations; 2) have a major impact, and; 3) are rationalized after the fact as being explainable and predictable.

We have learned from this outbreak the potential for an infectious disease to be politically, economically, and socially destabilizing, and that what kills us may be very different from what frightens us or substantially affects our social …

The Ebola Epidemic: A Public Health Emergency Of International Concern, Lawrence O. Gostin, Daniel Lucey, Alexandra Phelan

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

On August 8, 2014, the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Margaret Chan declared the West Africa Ebola crises a “public health emergency of international concern,” triggering powers under the 2005 International Health Regulations (IHR).

The most affected West African states have attempted classic public health measures with varied success, including quarantine and isolation, social distancing, risk communication, and travel restrictions. These have involved a trade off between population health and human rights; sometimes to the disadvantage of both. At the same time, the countries’ health systems and human resources are fragile, impeding an effective response.

Beyond the public health and …

International Organizations: An Early History, Michael Davies, Richard Woodward

Books/Book Chapters

This text provides a pioneering and comprehensive analysis of over one hundred international organizations. After introducing the broad historical and contextual settings, the book covers the full range of international organisations including those that are often overlooked or get minimal inclusion elsewhere. Each organization is analysed in a stand-alone section that consider its origins, basic mandates and evolution, the governance structure and the associated key players, current activities and future challenges. The descriptions also reflect each organization’s broader relationships with other international bodies.

Healthy Living Needs Global Governance, Lawrence O. Gostin

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

It may seem counter-intuitive, but the same factors that drive the spread of infectious diseases also contribute to the dominance of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the global burden of disease—urbanization, global markets and harmonized cultures. NCDs have overtaken infectious diseases as the leading cause of morbidity and premature mortality worldwide, with deaths concentrated among the poor due to the growing availability and affordability of highly-processed, unhealthy foods, alcohol and tobacco.

The global response to NCDs has been slow and fractured, with the World Health Organization dedicating scant funding and the United Nations waiting until September 2011 to hold a high-level …