Health Law and Policy Commons^™

On Health Status, Choice, And Immunity, Elizabeth Weeks Leonard

Popular Media

This article by Professor Elizabeth Weeks Leonard in JOTWELL on July 22, 2015, discusses discrimination on health status.

Dangers In Justifying A Means For An End: U.S. Supreme Court Faces Risky Interpretation Question With Ppaca, Exchanges, And Premium Tax Credits, Erin M. Peterson

Georgia Law Review

This Note examines the text of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to determine whether Congress intended for premium tax credits to be available on only state Exchanges, or on both state and federal Exchanges. This Note argues that strict textualism reveals that Congress clearly intended to limit premium tax credits to what the text defines as "an Exchange established by the State under section 1311 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act," which does not include federal Exchanges. However, this interpretation of the text nearly eliminates an essential function of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act …

Child Obesity As A Child Protection Concern In The United States And The United Kingdom: A Proposed Framework, Victoria Elissa Garel

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

The Hybrid Horseman Of The Apocalypse: The Global Aids Pandemic & The North-South Fracas, J.M. Spectar

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Public Health And The Tobacco Problem: International Legal Implications For Africa, William Onzivu

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

The Basel Convention And The Need For United States Implementation, Rebecca A. Kirby

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

"Do No Harm": A Comparative Analysis Of Legal Barriers To Corporate Clinical Telemedicine Providers In The United States, Australia, And Canada, Ian R. Landgreen

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

African Aids Crisis: Implications From The Rise Of Managed Care In South Africa, J. Christopher Driver

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Is There A Right To Die?: A Comparative Study Of Three Societies (Australia, Netherlands, United States), Lara L. Manzione

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

How Does The European Union Solve Crises - With Solutions Or By Avoidance? A Study Of The "Mad Cow Disease" Crisis, Salmeh K. Fodor

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

"Mad Plaintiff Disease?" Tobacco Litigation And The British Debate Over Adoption Of U.S.-Style Tort Litigation Methods, Kristen Gartman Rogers

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Procreating From Prison: Evaluating British Prisoners' Right To Artificially Inseminate Their Wives Under The United Kingdom's New Human Rights Act And The 2001 Mellor Case, Pollybeth Proctor

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Mending Broken Promises: Analyzing The Legality Of U.S. Withdrawal Of United Nations Population Fund Appropriations And The Need For Binding Un Commitments, Kristi Uhrinek

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

The World Health Organization's Framework Convention On Tobacco Control: An Analysis Of Guidelines Adopted By The Conference Of The Parties, Sam F. Halabi

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Who's Virus Is It Anyway? How The World Health Organization Can Protect Against Claims Of "Viral Sovereignty", Jason Carter

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

B.Y.O. Heroin: Will Canada Finally Recognize The Fundamental Rights Of Injection Drug Users By Providing Access To Safe Injection Facilities?, Robert Marston

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Beer, Liquor, Or A Little Bit Of Both? Getting To The Bottom Of Properly Classifying Flavored Malt Beverages In The United States And Australia, Bryan A. Schivera

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Health Care For Low-Income Classes In An Individual Mandate System: Lessons The United States Can Learn From Switzerland, Mason F. Reid

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

The Commerce Power And Congressional Mandates, Dan T. Coenen

Scholarly Works

In National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius, a five-Justice majority concluded that the commerce power did not support enactment of the so-called “individual mandate,” which imposes a penalty on many persons who fail to buy health insurance. That ruling is sure to spark challenges to other federal laws on the theory that they likewise mandate individuals or entities to take certain actions. Federal laws founded on the commerce power, for example, require mine operators to provide workers with safety helmets and (at least as a practical matter) require mine workers to wear them. Some analysts will say that laws …

Quick Change Justice, Sonja R. West, Dahlia Lithwick

Popular Media

The architecture of the U.S. Supreme Court Building is rife with turtles. There are turtles holding up the lampposts in the courtyard and turtles engraved in the stone decor. You can buy turtle coffee mugs at the gift shop. The turtle is said to represent the slow and deliberate pace of justice. This is an institution, the turtle tells us, that moves slowly, deliberately, and removed from the knee-jerk pace of the political branches.

Yet moments before they adjourned for their summer recess, the justices proved they can act quite quickly and recklessly when it comes to violating the terms …

Overcoming Barriers To The Protection Of Viable Fetuses, Randy Beck

Scholarly Works

I start this Article from the premise that the Court was correct in Roe v. Wade concerning the significance of fetal viability. I assume for the sake of argument that viability is a momentous point in pregnancy and that “logical and biological justifications” support a compelling state interest in protecting the lives of fetuses that have crossed the viability threshold. The goal of this Article is to highlight factors that individually and in concert significantly hinder legislative attempts to preserve the lives of viable fetuses, and to identify measures that, if permitted by the courts, could facilitate the pursuit of …

Crafting A Narrative For The Red State Option, Elizabeth Weeks Leonard

Scholarly Works

This Article examines the current state of play following the Supreme Court's decision in NFIB v. Sebelius to allow states the option of expanding their Medicaid programs in accordance with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). Holding that mandatory expansion was unconstitutionally coercive, the Court created the Red State Option. Despite the enormously generous federal financial support for Medicaid expansion, close to half of the states have declined. At the same time, at least eight Republican-led states have crossed Tea Party lines to accept federal funding for expansion. Drawing lessons from these states, including Arkansas, Arizona, Michigan, and …

The Prudential Third Party Standing Of Family-Owned Corporations, Matthew I. Hall, Benjamin Means

Scholarly Works

On November 26, 2013, the Supreme Court agreed to decide whether for-profit corporations or their shareholders have standing to challenge federal regulations that implement the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). At issue in the two cases consolidated for appeal, Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood Specialties, are regulations mandating that employers with fifty or more employees offer health insurance that includes coverage for all contraceptives approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The plaintiffs assert that providing certain types of contraceptive care would be contrary to their religious beliefs and allege, therefore, that the mandate violates the Religious …

Ignorance, Harm, And The Regulation Of Performance-Enhancing Substances, Lisa Milot

Scholarly Works

There is a disconnect between how legal and sporting authorities, on the one hand, and many elite athletes, on the other, view the use of performance-enhancing substances. While official and popular narratives portray the use of these substances as isolated examples of deviant behavior, to the elite athletes who daily push their bodies beyond societally normal limits of pain and risk, enhancement is oftentimes an accepted part of the job. As a result, efforts to regulate and detect athletes’ use of these substances have consistently captured only a small fraction of the use that exists.

This Article describes the ways …

Genomics Unbound: The Scientific And Legal Case Against Patents Based On Naturally Occurring Dna Sequences, Fazal Khan

Scholarly Works

While there have been mixed opinions as to whether gene patents were dead in light of Prometheus,this Article argues that a proper understanding of patent law, genomics, and public policy concerns should lead to no other result. The primary focus of this piece is to rebut certain vested interests in the biotechnology industry and affirm the normative claim that gene patents improperly fetter genomics research and development. First, through the lens of the Myriad case, we will recount why there was such a strong public interest movement against recognizing such patents. Specifically, we will show how patents on naturally occurring …

Stemming The Federal Tort Fountain: Why Federal Courts Should Maintain Implied Certification Limitations On Qui Tam Suits Against Nonclaimant Defendants, Dennis O. Vann Jr.

Georgia Law Review

Qui tam suits in the health-care industry increasingly
target pharmaceutical and medical-device manufacturers
rather than the medical providers who directly make
claims to federal health-insurance programs. These suits
commonly argue that the manufacturer induced the
provider to falsely certify compliance with federal and
state antifraud laws, such as the Anti-Kickback Statute.
This Note shows that suits based on such "implied
certification"of adherence to laws should not be permitted
under the Federal False Claims Act unless the
non submitting defendant is first convicted of providing a
kickback. First, this Note analyzes recent amendments to
the Anti-Kickback Statute in the Affordable Care …

A Response To Beyond Separation: Professor Copeland’S Ambitious Proposal For “Integrative” Federalism, Elizabeth Weeks

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Plunging Into Endless Difficulties: Medicaid And Coercion In National Federation Of Independent Business V. Sebelius, Elizabeth Weeks Leonard, Nicole Huberfield, Kevin Outterson

Scholarly Works

Of the four discrete questions before the Court in National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius, the Medicaid expansion held the greatest potential for destabilization from both a statutory and a constitutional perspective. As authors of an amicus brief supporting the Medicaid expansion, and scholars with expertise in health law who have been cited by the Court, we show in this article why NFIB is likely to fulfill that promise.

For the first time in its history, the Court held federal legislation based upon the spending power to be unconstitutionally coercive. Chief Justice Roberts’ plurality (joined for future voting purposes …

Employers United: An Empirical Analysis Of Corporate Political Speech In The Wake Of The Affordable Care Act, Elizabeth Weeks Leonard, Susan Scholz, Raquel Meyer Alexander

Scholarly Works

Is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) bad for business? Did the countries' most prominent companies game the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) disclosure process to make negative political statements about ObamaCare? Immediately following the ACA's enactment on March 23, 2010, a number of companies drew scrutiny for issuing SEC filings writing off millions – and in AT&T's case, one billion dollars – against expected earnings for 2010 alone, based on a single, discrete tax-law change in the ACA. Congressional and Administration officials accused the firms of being "irresponsible" and using "big numbers to exaggerate the health reform's …

Death Panels And The Rhetoric Of Rationing, Elizabeth Weeks Leonard

Scholarly Works

This essay offers an explanation for the United States' continued resistance to universal health care as grounded in two taboos: taxation and rationing. Even we were willing to pay more in taxes to directly subsidize the cost of medical care for those in need, rather than our current system of indirect subsidization through private insurance risk-pooling and cost-shifting, we still would face the unavoidable reality of resource limitations. Attempts to limit resource consumption, however, have been strongly opposed, as evidenced by the "death panels" controversy. Governor Palin's grossly erroneous characterization of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) rendered …