Public Health Law and Ethics, Spring 2014
PUBLIC HEALTH LAW AND ETHICS
INSTRUCTOR: Robert J. Lieberman, Esq.
COURSE OUTLINE (Spring 2014)
Jan. 22
Introduction to the Course
Introductory Postings on the Discussion Tool due by Wednesday September 4,
2013 at 9:00 p.m.
Jan. 29
UNIT 1
Public Health: The Population-Based Perspective
Public Health Law & Ethics (Ppt presentation/ video lecture)
Reading: Mapping the Issues, 1-8
Feb. 5
UNIT 2
The Relation of Public Health to Ethics
Doing Ethics (Ppt presentation/ video lecture)
Reading: Community: The Neglected Tradition of Public Health, 35-38
Feb. 12
UNIT 3
Human Rights and Public Health
Doing Ethics (Ppt presentation/ video lecture cont.)
Reading: Health and Human Rights, 257-265
Feb. 19
UNIT 4
Reasoning in Public Health: Philosophy, Risk & Cost
The Public Health Framework (Ppt presentation/ video lecture)
Reading: Paternalism and Its Discontents, 82-85
Feb. 26
UNIT 5
Public Health Duties & Powers
Federalism and the Public Health (Ppt presentation/ video lecture)
Reading: DeShaney v Winnebago Co. Dept. of Social Services 105-110
March 5
UNIT 6
The Public Health and Litigation
Tort Litigation (ppt presentation and video lecture)
Ethics and Law (ppt presentation and video lecture)
Reading: The New Public Health Litigation, 199-205
March 12
March 26
Mid-term Exam
UNIT 7
Surveillance & Public Health Research: Privacy & the Right to Know
Tuskegee and the Ethics of Public Health Initiatives (Ppt presentation/ video
lecture)
Reading: Informational Privacy and the Public’s Health: The Model State Public
Health Privacy Act, 316-320
Apr. 2
UNIT 8
Health Promotion: Education, Persuasion, & Free Expression
Health Promotion: Education or Indoctrination (Ppt presentation/ video lecture)
Reading: Ethical Issues in Government-sponsored Public Health Campaigns, 328332
Apr. 9
UNIT 9
Public Health and Belief Systems
When Ethics, Religious Beliefs and Good Medical Practice Are in Conflict: A
case study (Ppt presentation/ video lecture)
Reading: Brown v. Stone (p. 380-382)
Apr. 16
UNIT 10
Biological Interventions to Control Infectious Disease: Immunization, Screening
and Treatment
Human Papilloma Virus Vaccine as Public Health Practice (Ppt presentation/
video lecture)
Reading: Ferguson v City of Charleston, 395-397
Apr. 23
UNIT 11
Public Health: An Agent for Prevention
Cancer Screening (ppt presentation/ video lecture)
Reading: Directly Observed Therapy (DOT) for Tuberculosis (p. 398-401)
Apr. 30
UNIT 12
Public Health: An Evolving Enterprise
The Future of Public Health (ppt presentation/ video lecture)
Reading: Obesity, Poverty, and the Built Environment: Challenges and
Opportunities (p. 510-514)
May 5
Final Examination Available Online
Course Requirements
The total number of points available in this course is 100.
Each student is required to respond to discussion questions and/or react to the reading in the
discussion tool by Friday at 4:00 p.m. of the week following the date the reading assignment was
due. (2 points per discussion, 12 discussions, total points 24)
Each student is required to take a weekly quiz by 4:00 p.m on the day of the assigned
reading. Quizzes will consist of a few short answer and/or multiple choice questions that will
come from the reading and any of the previous weeks discussions. Each quiz is worth 2 points,
for a total of 24 points.
Each student will be required to take a mid-term examination (25 points toward final grade) and
a final examination (25 points toward final grade).
The remaining 2 points available can be earned by signing up for Remind101.com (see course
introduction).
Please note that should you fail, unless for a very serious reason, to complete the midterm
and final examinations as scheduled in the syllabus, you will not be allowed to take the
examinations at another time.
Course Grading Scheme:
100-94 = A
93-85 = B+
84-77=B
76-69=C+
68-61=C
60-53=D
52-Below=F
Course Text: Public Health Law and Ethics, A Reader. Ed. Lawrence O. Gostin (Los Angeles:
University of California Press, Revised/Updated 2nd. Edition;2010) Students are urged also to
make use of the following web site: www.publichealthlaw.net/reader
Instructor’s e-mail: rl592@rci.rutgers.edu
OFFICE HOURS
I am always available via e-mail and will try to answer all questions within 24 hours. If you
need to set up in-person office hours or if you would like to meet via Skype, I am happy to
arrange to meet with you at a mutually convenient time.
Academic Integrity: All members of our community must be confident that each person’s work
has been responsibly and honorably acquired, developed, and presented. Any effort to gain
advantage not given to all students is dishonest, whether or not the effort is successful. A
violation of academic honesty is a breach of trust and will result in penalties, including possible
suspension or expulsion. When in doubt about plagiarism, paraphrasing, quoting or
collaboration, consult course instructor.