C|M|LAW Library Blog

Behavioral scientists at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC), Division of Violence Prevention recently examined 1999-2016 suicide rates in the United States. “Suicide rates increased significantly in 44 states, with 25 states experiencing increases >30%.  Rates increased significantly among males and females in 34 and 43 states, respectively. … Among decedents with available information, several circumstances were significantly more likely among those without known mental health conditions than among those with mental health conditions, including relationship problems/loss (45.1% versus 39.6%), life stressors (50.5% versus 47.2%), and recent/impending crises (32.9% versus 26.0%)…” The full report, Trends in State Suicide Rates – United States, 1999-2016 and Circumstances Contributing to Suicide – 27 States, 2015, is published in 67 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 617-624 (June 8, 2018). For additional data and information, see the CDC National Violent Death Reporting System website and the Division of Violence Prevention Suicide Prevention page.

Law Library Legal Research Seminars are for C|M|LAW students, including our MLS and LLM students.  The Seminars are continuously available online via the Westlaw TWEN platform.  You earn points for completing an online Seminar by correctly answering 3/4 of the questions on that Seminar’s quiz.  Your Seminar points are good for the entire time you are here at C|M|LAW.  When you earn 100 points, you are awarded a Law Library Legal Research Letter of Recognition and a Digital Badge, which you can post to your LinkedIn page.  You can earn multiple Letters and Digital Badges.  Here are the currently available online Law Library Legal Research Seminars:

• Starting Research with Secondary Sources – Why recreate the wheel? Examine how secondary sources explain and analyze “the law” for you, as well as cite primary authority. [17:02 mins; 12.5 points]
• Westlaw Overview – [10:48 mins; 12.5 points] – Leap beyond Google and start to harness this legal research gtiant. Understand big box and pre-filtered searching, as well as how to print/download/email search results.
• KeyCite – [10:16 mins; 12.5 points] – Why is a red flag different from a yellow flag, and what should you do when you see either one? Learn how to use the Westlaw citator service to update and expand your research.
• Lexis Advance Overview – [21:11 mins; 12.5 points] – One more time, leap beyond Google and start to harness this legal research gtiant. Understand big box and pre-filtered searching, as well as how to print/download/email search results.
• Shepard’s – [11:54 mins; 12.5 points] – Why is a red stop sign different from a yellow triangle, and what should you do when you see either one? Learn how to use the Lexis Advance citator service to update and expand your research.
• Terms & Connectors Searching – Explore the power of search techniques beyond natural language searching. Learn the basics of combining terms & phrases in effective search statements. [10:48 mins; 12.5 points]
• Bluebooking – For faster legal drafting, review how to effectively apply citation and style rules, as well as abbreviation and jurisdiction tables. [38:47 mins; 25 points]
• Administrative Law – [29:59 mins; 25 points] – Break through the mysteries of agency rulemaking and case adjudication. Learn the key resources for finding federal and Ohio agency regulations and decisions.
• Bioethics Resources & Scholarly Writing – Examine a wide array of bioethics resources, and learn how these resources can be used to select a paper topic and conduct effective research on that topic. [28:33 mins; 25 points]

For more information on the Law Library Legal Research Seminars, contact Laura Ray, Outreach & Instructional Services Librarian.

Ohio’s application for a State Innovation Waiver under section 1332 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) was recently denied. Ohio was specifically seeking to waive the “individual mandate.”* Per federal guidelines (see 45 C.F.R. 155.1308(c)), the application was reviewed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of the Treasury (hereinafter “the Departments”). The Departments found the application to be incomplete, as communicated to the Ohio Department of Insurance in a 5/17/18 letter from Randy Pate, Director of the Center for Consumer Information & Insurance Oversight (CCIIO) and Deputy Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Specifically, the Ohio application did “not include a description of any program implementing a waiver plan for providing coverage that meets section 1332 requirements,” and did not include a description of the reason Ohio was seeking to waive the “individual mandate.” [See requirements detailed at 42 U.S.C. 18052 and 45 C.F.R. 155.1308(f)(3)(iii).] The CCIIO oversees the implementation of PPACA provisions related to private health insurance, including Section 1332 State Innovation Waivers, which permit a state to “pursue innovative strategies for providing their residents with access to high quality, affordable health insurance while retaining the basic protections of the ACA.” After the Departments make a preliminary determination that a State Innovation Waiver application is complete, they provide for a public notice and comment period, and make a final decision on the application within 180 days.

*The “individual mandate” was originally codified at 26 U.S.C. §5000A and 26 C.F.R. 1.5000A-2. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (Pub. L. No. 115-97, 131 Stat. 2054, 12/22/17; text not yet available – see Section 11081 of H.R. 1, 115th Cong., 2017) repealed §5000A and eliminated the penalty associated with the individual mandate, beginning in 2019. However, no changes were made to the statutory language that established the mandate. For more information, see The Individual Mandate for Health Insurance Coverage: In Brief, by the Congressional Research Service.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has affirmed that ORC 3701.034 is unconstitutional.  [See Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio v. Lance Himes, 6th Cir., No. 16-4027, 4/18/18.]  The court said the law violates the “unconstitutional conditions doctrine,” which forbids the government from placing conditions on a recipient of federal funds that would infringe on the recipient’s constitutional rights. While the government has no obligation to fund abortion activities, it may not use its control over federal funds to stop Planned Parenthood from exercising its constitutionally protected right to advocate for legal abortion.  ORC 3701.034 was codified by House Bill 294, and was to become effective May 23, 2016.  It would have prevented Planned Parenthood’s 28 Ohio-based affiliates – only 3 of which provide abortion services – from receiving federal money to pay for programs under the Violence Against Women Act, the Breast and Cervical Cancer Mortality Prevention Act, an infertility prevention project, the Minority HIV/AIDS Initiative, and a personal responsibility education program.  On 5/23/26, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio issued a temporary restraining order, blocking enforcement of the law.  [See Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio v. Hodges, 201 F. Supp. 3d 898 (S.D. Ohio 2016).]

The state of Hawaii recently legalized physician-assisted suicide.  The “Our Choice, Our Care Act” will “give patients the ability to choose their own medical care at the end of life and at the same time, ensure robust safeguards are in place to prevent any possible abuse.”  A mentally competent adult resident patient, determined to be suffering from a terminal disease and who has voluntarily expressed a wish to die, may make an informed request for “a prescription that may be self-administered for the purpose of ending the adult’s life.”  At all times, the patient “shall retain the right to rescind the request for medication and be under no obligation to fill the prescription or use the medication.”  For additional legislative history information on this act, see the HB2739 HD1 page.