By Temple University Center for Public Health Law Research Since the 1990s, there has been a growing movement to improve access to immunization services by giving pharmacists the authority to administer vaccines. The newest map on LawAtlas.org explores state laws from 1990 to 2016 that give pharmacists authority to administer vaccines and establish requirements for…
By Christopher Robertson Whether it is Ebola, H1N1, the season flu, or the next nasty bug that we cannot yet even imagine, if we wanted to efficiently spread the disease, one could not do much better than packing several hundred people into a cylinder for a few hours, while they eat, drink, defecate, and urinate.…
By George Maliha As flu season begins, we are bombarded by ubiquitous reminders to get our flu shot. So, it is a good opportunity to reflect on how we provide vaccines to our fellow citizens 65 and older. By law, Medicare Part B covers 4 preventive vaccines (flu, two pneumococcal, and hepatitis B for medium-to…
By Ross D. Silverman This week, the Supreme Court appropriately declined to hear an appeal of a 2nd Circuit decision upholding the right of the state to require vaccination as a condition of enrollment in public schools, and to exclude exempted children from attending school during an infectious disease outbreak. Tony Yang and I wrote…
By Michelle Meyer I’ve started writing for Forbes as a regular contributor. My first piece, Carly Fiorina Says Her Views On Vaccines Are Unremarkable; For Better Or Worse, She’s Right, analyzes GOP presidential candidate Carly Fiorina’s recent ad hoc remarks on the relative rights of parents and schools with respect to vaccinations and to some…
By Wendy Parmet Australia’s recently announced “no jab, no pay” policy offers a potent reminder of the all-too-common tendency to penalize vulnerable populations for public health problems. Like many other countries, Australia has experienced a worrisome increase in the number of families deciding not to vaccinate their children. In response, the government of Prime Minister Tony…
By Allison M. Whelan, J.D.Senior Fellow, Center for Biotechnology & Global Health Policy, University of California, Irvine School of LawGuest Blogger In a previous post, I discussed three possible methods of increasing vaccination and decreasing vaccine refusals in the United States. One of these options was using tort law and allowing lawsuits against parents for…
By Arthur Caplan A new piece by contributor Art Caplan in Forbes: There are lots of reasons why measles, having gone to Disneyland, is enjoying a comeback around the United States and Canada. Unfounded fears of autism scare some parents. Others buy the daffy conspiracy theory that pharmaceutical companies are just pushing vaccination to make…
By Allison M. Whelan For many years now, there has been ongoing debate about childhood vaccinations and the recent measles outbreak in Disneyland and its subsequent spread to other states has brought vaccinations and questions about communicable diseases back to the headlines. Politicians, including potential presidential candidates such as Hilary Clinton, Rand Paul, and Chris…
By Timo Minssen The current Ebola outbreak already attracted much attention on “Bill of Health” resulting in some excellent blogs on a horrible topic. While it is evident that the current health crisis requires both immediate responses and more sustainable changes in health care policy, research and regulation, medicines regulators are collaborating internationally to find innovative…
