The Legal System/Framing Issues of Public Health, Law and Policy
The Legal System/Framing Issues of Public Health, Law and Policy
Modular Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this module, the student will be able to satisfy the following outcomes:
· Case
· Describe the primary roles of federal, state, and local government in public health and public health policies.
· Explain the challenges of evidence-based policy making.
· SLP
· Explain policy development and identify and describe specific areas in which public health policy is needed.
· Examine and describe a specific public health policy.
· Discussion
· Examine and discuss the role government in public health and public health policies.
· Discuss how Lobby groups can influence Public Health policies.
Module Overview
In this course students will become acquainted (or re-acquainted) with the U.S legal system. Upon doing so, we will examine the interface of this system with public health. What is the legal basis for public health? What role does government (both federal and state) play relative to public health? What limits exist on government intervention where public health is concerned?
Health care systems are designed to meet the health care needs of target populations. There are a wide variety of health care systems around the world. In some countries, the health care system has evolved and has not been planned, whereas in others a concerted effort has been made by governments, trade unions, charities, religious, or other coordinated bodies to deliver planned health care services targeted to the populations they serve. However, health care planning has often been evolutionary rather than revolutionary.
The goals for health systems, according to the World Health Report 2000 – Health systems: improving performance (WHO, 2000), are good health, responsiveness to the expectations of the population, and fair financial contribution. Duckett proposed a two dimensional approach to evaluation of health care systems: quality, efficiency and acceptability on one dimension and equity on another. (Duckett, S. J. 2004. The Australian health care system. 2nd edition ed. Melbourne: Oxford University Press.)
Public policy can be generally defined as a system of laws, regulatory measures, courses of action, and funding priorities, which is adopted by a governmental entity or its representatives. Public policy is implemented to create change in the behavior of a target population, usually to improve a public problem. Within the field of public health, public policies have been developed in a number of areas, such as seat belt laws, funding for a teen anti-smoking campaign, etc.
Module 1 – Outcomes
The Legal System/Framing Issues of Public Health, Law and Policy
· Module
· Examine the scope and limits of authority of government with regard to public health.
· Explain the development of public health policy.
· Case
· Examine and discuss the role of the Federal, State, and Local government in public health and public health policies.
· Explain policy development, identify and discuss specific areas in which public health is needed.
· SLP
· Examine and discuss the role of the Federal, State and Local government agencies in public health and public health policies.
· Explain policy development, identify and discuss specific areas in which public health is needed.
· Discussion
· Examine and discuss the role government in public health and public health policies.
· Discuss how Lobby groups can influence Public Health policies.