Course Description

Prerequisite: None

Provides an understanding of how the law serves as a tool in advancing a public health agenda. The class is interdisciplinary, including law students and students from public health-related fields. The course examines the history of public health law, the tension between state and federal governments in the regulation of the publics health, and the conflicts between governmental powers and individual autonomy. The course considers the standard practice of public health professionals to prevent disease and promote healthy behaviors in the wake of emerging public health challenges such as racial disparities in health care, a potential flu pandemic, the obesity epidemic, and the abortion debate.