C|M|LAW Library Blog

Many readers know that C|M|LAW has a Center for Health Law and Policy. When starting your research in health law, be sure to check out the law library’s Center for Health Law and Policy Guide, which is full of information including: statute and regulation information, top books, databases, websites, blogs,  journals, and other periodicals.

The law library subscribes to Health Affairs, which can be accessed through the Law Databases link on the library homepage. CSU’s Michael Schwartz (main) Library also has a number of other helpful databases related to health: Health and Psychosocial Instruments, Health Source: Consumer Edition, and Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition.

As always, you can contact a reference librarian with any questions; the best way to reach us is via email at research.services@csuohio.edu.

The American Health Law Association (AHLA) is a professional legal organization for attorneys who practice in the area of health law. The organization was formed by the merger of the National Health Lawyers Association and the American Academy of Healthcare Attorneys. AHLA has over 13,000 members who practice in law and consulting firms—academic, in-house, and in a variety of public sector work settings.

AHLA has created a Coronavirus Pandemic Hub that includes information to help members and the public stay up to date on new developments on the coronavirus pandemic, with a specific focus on resources developed by AHLA for the health law community. Available are information/news documents, videos, podcasts, analyses, checklists, webinars, and links to pandemic-related websites and documents.

Equitable Enforcement to Achieve Health Equity: An Introductory Guide for Policymakers and Practitioners (guide available for download on this website with free signup for the website’s library) is a free new guidebook available from ChangeLab Solutions (ChangeLab). ChangeLab  is a national organization that advances equitable laws and policies to ensure healthy lives for all. ChangeLab has a multidisciplinary team of lawyers, planners, policy analysts, and other professionals that work with state and local governments, advocacy organizations, and anchor institutions to create thriving communities.

This guidebook was listed on the Centers for Disease Control website and came about because enforcement actions taken in the name of public health can sometimes harm, discriminate against, or otherwise undermine the health of the very people whom the laws are meant to protect. Enforcement that is carried out inequitably can create or make worse existing health inequities. The thinking behind equitable enforcement is that wrongdoers can be held accountable while still protecting the health of individuals and the community and incentivizing compliance.

Medicine and Law is an international publication dealing with medico-legal issues. The journal is comprised of original articles, court decisions, and legislation on topics including medical law, forensic medicine, sexology and law, psychiatry and law, psychology and law, dentistry and law, nursing law, pharmaceutical law, medical ethics, clinical criminology, drugs, alcohol, child abuse, medical experimentation, genetic engineering, and many more.

The cancellation of the 2020 World Congress on Medical Law resulted in the June issue of Medicine and Law becoming a time capsule which contemporaneously reviewed the first six months of the Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic. Within that timeframe, the journal was able to secure 17 reports from different countries and jurisdictions which, with the exception of a single report, were independently refereed and critically edited.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated and expanded its list of People Who Are at Increased Risk for Severe Illness for getting COVID-19.  Changes are based upon continuous detailed review of available evidence.  [For example, see Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report, volume 69, number 24, 759-765 (6/19/2020).]   Older adults and people with underlying medical conditions remain at increased risk, but age- and condition-related risks are further defined.  The specific age threshold has been removed from the older adult classification, and CDC now states risk increases steadily as one ages.  For additional information, see the CDC Coronavirus (COVID-19) page.