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Public Health Law

This is a syllabus developed Terry O'Brien, an Assistant Attorney General of Minnesota. He is a leading expert in public health law and enforcement. Mr. O'Brien taught the course at the University of Minnesota School of Law in Spring 1996. (Note from EPR - I worked with Mr. O'Brien in the development of this course and used his syllabus in the development of my course.)

This course is divided into 6 segments. Segment I is introductory. We will discuss the role of law in public health, review the history and current status of the public health infrastructure as it relates to protecting us from and responding to infectious disease, identify the nature and causes of emerging infectious diseases and distinguish general health and medical law from public health law.

In Segment II, we will investigate the source and nature of state police power, its history and current status, and note the shifting judicial standards of review and evidence. We will discuss the effect of the police power on the First Amendment rights of religion, expression and association. We will analyze the relationship between the police power to protect the public health and Fourth Amendment issues attached to mandatory disclosure of personal information to the government as well as non consensual disclosure of personal health information by governmental officials.

Segment III will address the constitutional and statutory limits of police power. We will review successful challenges to the exercise of police power based upon substantive and procedural due process and equal protection. Moreover, we will consider the ramifications of statutory schemes to protect the rights of persons with communicable diseases under the American with Disabilities Act and the Minnesota Human Rights Act.

In Segment IV we will discuss public health incentives and disincentives in the context of penal and civil sanctions.

Segment V will provide case studies applying the Minnesota Noncompliant Carrier Law to carriers of tuberculosis and HIV. Moreover, inasmuch as health care workers with HIV or HBV present a unique context in which to apply knowledge relating to mandatory reporting, testing, lawful and unlawful occupational discrimination, tort duties to inform, to treat and to warn and privacy issues, we will review the public health law issues presented in these cases.

In the final Segment, we will speculate about the lawful response to future epidemics.

Segment I: INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC HEALTH LAW IN EMERGING INFECTIOUS DISEASES.

David Satcher, Emerging Infections: Getting Ahead of the Curve, Emerging Infectious Diseases 1-6 (1995)

Steven S. Morse, Factors and Emergence of Infectious Disease, Emerging Infectious Diseases 7-15 (1995)

Work in Progress, Edward Richards and Kathleen Rathbun, Personal Health vs. Public Health: Conflicts of Interest and Their Effect on Controlling Emerging Infectious Diseases 17-26

Gostin, Larry, American Public Health Law: The Role of Law in an Era of Emerging Microbial Threats 17-56

In re Halko, 54 Cal. Rptr. 661 (1966) 131-134

An Outbreak Hits a Small Town, Los Angeles Times, May 7 and 8, 1995.

Edward Richards, The Jurisprudence of Prevention: The Right of Societal Self-Defense Against Dangerous Individuals, Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly Part I 62-76

Segment II: THE CONCEPT AND APPLICATION OF POLICE POWER TO PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH

Brief Introduction to Infectious Diseases, Chapter One, AIDS: CASES AND MATERIALS (1989) 135-180

Jacobson V. Massachusetts, 197 U.S. 11 (1905) 181-190

Minn. Stat. §§ 144.05, 144.12, 145.075, 145A.04, 145A.06 (1994) 191-198

Stone v. Probst, 206 N.W2d 642 (1925) 199-200

Schulte v. Fitch, 202 N.W. 719 (1925) 201-104

State v. Crabtree, 15 N.W.2d98 (1944) 205-208

Grossman v. Baumgartner, 218 N.E.2d 259 (1966) 209-212

Minnesota State Board of Health v. Brainerd, 241 N.W.2d 624 (1976) 213-220

Siegel v. Shinnick, 219 F.Supp. 789 (1963) 221-224

POLICE POWER TO PROTECT THE PUBLIC HEALTH VIS-A-VIS:

1. FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS of Religion, Speech and Association

Brown v. Stone, 738 So.2d 218 (1980) 225-230

Minn. Stat. §§ 144.441 - 449 (1994) 231-236

Doe v. City of Minneapolis, 898 F.2d 612 (1990) 237-246

City of New York v. The New St. Mark's Baths, 130 Misc.2d 911 (1986) 247-252

2. FOURTH AMENDMENT RIGHTS and Mandatory Testing

Employment

Anonymous Fireman v. The City of Willoughby, 779 F.Supp. 402 (1991) 253-266

Glover v. Eastern Nebraska Community Office of Retardation, 686 F.Supp. 243 (D. Neb. 1988) 267-274

Leckelt v. Board of Commissioners of Hospital District No. 1, 909 F.2d 820 (5th Cir. 1990) 275-286

Post Conviction

Minn. Stat. § 611 A.19 (1994) 287-288

In the Matter of Juveniles A, B, C, D, E, 487 P.2d 455 (Wa. 1993) 289-304

State v. Farmer, 805 P2d 200 (Wa. 1991) 305-308

State v. Adams, 597 N.E. 2d 574 (Ill. 1992) 309-316

Preconviction

People v. Durham, 553 N.Y.S.2d 944 (1990) 317-320

Non-consensual Medical Tests in the Course of Exam

Hill v. Evans, 1993 WL595676 (M.D. Ala) 321-332

3. FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT RIGHTS of Informational Privacy, Autonomy, and Liberty

Mandatory Reports

Minnesota Communicable Disease Rules, Parts 4605.7000-.7800 333-340

Whalen v. Roe, 429 U.S. 589 (1972) 341-348

Derrick v. Ontario Community Hospital et al., 47 Cal. App. 3d 145 (1975) 349-354

McBarnette v. Feldman, 582 N.Y.S.2d 900 (1992) 355-360

Minn. Stat. § 144.054 361-362

Privacy

Terry O'Brien, Mandated Reporting and Data Privacy 363-402

Thomas v. Morris, 36 N.E.2d 141 (N.Y. App. 1941) 403-404

People v. Calvo, 432 N.E.2d 223 (1982) 405-408

State v. J.E., 606 A.2d 1160 (N.J.Sup.Ct. 1992) 409-412

State v. Wells, 562 So.2d 1315 (1989) 413-416

Farnsworth v. Proctor and Gamble, 101 F.R.D. 355 (N.D.Ga. 1984) 417-418

Minn. Stat. §§ 13.38, 13.42, 144.658, 144.053 (1994) 419-422

Ronald Bayer and Kathleen Toomey, Health Law and Ethics: The Two Faces of Partner Notification, American Journal of Public Health, August, 1992 423-430

Doe v. Barrington, 729 F.Supp. 376 (1990) 431-436

Liberty

People ex rel. Barmore v. Robertson, 134 N.E. 815 (Ill. 1922) 123

Varholy v. Sweat, 15 So.2d 267 (Fla. 1943) 437-440

Reynolds v. McNichols, 488 F.2d 1378 (10th Cir. 1973) 441-446

SEGMENT III: CONSTITUTIONAL AND STATUTORY LIMITS ON THE EXERCISE OF POLICE POWER TO PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH

A. Constitutional Limits

Alan Kraut, Silent Travelers, A Plague of Nativism: The Cases of Chick Gin and "Typhoid Mary." 447-462

Jew Ho v. Williamson, 103 F.2d 10 (N.D. Cal. 1900) 463-474

Revist Wong Wai v. Williamson, (check cite) 154-157

Green v. Edwards, 263 S.E.2d 661 (W.V. 1980) 475-478

Wendy Parmet, The Police Power and AIDS: The Limits of Legal Precedent, JHHRA 479-488

B. Statutory Limitations

Guenter Risse, Epidemics and History: Ecological Perspectives and Social Responses, AIDS: The Burdens of History 489-506

School Board v. Arline, 480 U.S. 273 (1987) 507-518

Doe v. District of Columbia, 796 F.Supp. 559 (1992) 519-530

Doe v. Kohn, Nast & Graf, 862 F.Supp. 1310 (E.D.Pa. 1994) 531-542

Doe v. Attorney General, 44 F3d 715 (9th Cir. 1995) 543-548

Kohl v. Woodhaven Learning Center, 865 F.2d 930 (1989) 549-562

Ward v. Skinner, 943 F.2d 157 (1991) 563-568

Larry O. Goston, Public Health Powers: The Imminence of Radical Change, Journal of Milbank Quarterly 569-582

C. Different Fact Finders and Standards of Proof

State v. Snow, 324 S.W.2d 532 (Ark. 1959) 583-590

SEGMENT IV: MAINTENANCE OF PUBLIC HEALTH THROUGH CRIMINAL AND TORT DISENCENTIVES

A. Criminal Sanctions

Attempted Murder and Assault With a Deadly Weapon

State v. Smith, 621 A.2d 493 (N.J.App. 1993) 591-602

Weeks v. Collins, 867 F.Supp. 544 (S.D. Tex. 1994) 603-608

U.S. v. Sturges, 510 F.2d 397 (1975) 609-616

Violations of Public Health Statutes

Minn. Stat. §§ 144.49, 145.36 (1994) and Minn. Laws 1995, Ch. 226, Art. 2 § 17 617-620

State v. Gamberella, 633 S.2d 595 (La.App. 1993) 621-628

Needle Exchange Programs

Minn. Stat. § 152.09 (1994) 629-630

Commonwealth v. Leno, 616 N.E.2d 453 (Mass. 1993) 631-634

People v. Bordowitz, 588 N.Y.S.2d 507 (1991) 635-640

B. Torts

Duty to Inform

Doe v. Johnson 817 F.Supp. 1382 (W.D. Mich. 1993) 641-652

Defenses

Zysk v. Zysk, 404 S.E.2d 721 (W.V. 1990) 653-654

Aetna Casualty Surety v. Sheft, 989 F.2d 1105 (9th Cir. 1993) 655-660

Disease Phobia Cases

Tichler v. Dimenna, 609 N.Y.S.2d 1002 (1994) 661-666

SEGMENT V: CASE STUDIES

A. Public Health as it Relates to Health Care Workers

Terry O'Brien Materials on Health Care Worker Issues 667-684

Duty to Treat

Glanz v. Vernick, 756 F.Supp. 632 (D.Mass. 1991) 685-690

State v. Clausen, 491 N.W.2d 662 (Minn. Ct. App. 1992) 691-696

Duty to Secure Consent for Testing

Doe v. Dyer-Godde, 566 A.2d 89 (Pa.Super. 1989) 697-700

Duty to Warn

Skillings v. Allen, 173 N.W.2d 663 (Minn. 1919) 701-704

Bradshaw v. Daniel, 854 S.W.2d 865 (10th Cir. 1993) 705-710

Reisner v. Regents of the University of California 37 Cal.Rpt.2d 518 (Cal. App.2d Dist. 1995) 711-716

Minn. Stat. §§ 214.17 - .25 (1994) 719-724

Behringer v. Medical Center at Princeton, 592 A.2d 1251 (1991) 725-752

Hidding v. Williams, 578 So.2d 1192 (La.App. 1991) 753-756

Benson v. Minnesota Board of Medical Practice, 526 N.W.2d 634 (Minn.App. 1995) 757-760

B. NonCompliant Carrier Issues

Minn. Stat. § 144.4171 - .4186 (1994) 761-766

In re Stillinovich, 479 N.W.2d 731 (Minn.App. 1992) 767-772

Blair v. U.S., 525 A.2d 170 (D.C.App. 1987) 773-780

SEGMENT VI: FUTURE DEVELOPMENT

Larry Gostin, The Future of Public Health Law, American Journal of Law and Medicine 781-796

City of Newark v. J.S., 652 A.2d 265 (1993) 797-808

Ron Bayer, Public Health Policy and The AIDS Epidemic: An End to HIV Exceptionalism, NEJM 809-814

Mike Osterholm, Emerging Infections: A Significant Threat to the Nation's Public Health, Senate Testimony, October 1995 815-844

Ed Richards, The Jurisprudence of Prevention of Prevention: The Right of Societal Self-Defense Against Dangerous Individuals, Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly, Parts II and III, 76-122

Korematsu v. U.S., 323 U.S. 214 (1944) 845-857

David Fidler, Globalization, International Law, and Emerging Infectious Diseases, Emerging Infectious Diseases, April-June, 1996

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