Earlier this year, Public Health Law Watch, in collaboration with members of the George Consortium and other partner organizations, hosted a series of legal briefings related to COVID-19 and legal and policy issues associated with the global pandemic. Experts and scholars joined us for bi-weekly livestreamed discussions on these issues. We invite you to read the summaries of selected episodes below! And, enjoy relistening to the series (linked below and archived on our #COVIDLawBriefing webpage).

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6/11/2020: Trends, Take-Aways, and Things to Think About

Mod: Nicolas Terry

Speakers: Wendy Parmet, Lance Gable, Scott Burris

In this #COVIDLawBrief “director’s cut” Professor Parmet, Professor Gable, and Professor Burris sit on a panel and reflect on the discussions that the group has had over the past 4 months. A crucial takeaway for everyone was the disproportionate effects that COVID-19 has had on different communities. Low income workers and communities of color have been decimated by the pandemic due to a myriad of issues. These range from lack of access to healthcare to unsafe working conditions. Another huge takeaway for the group was the politicization of science. Although this can be traced back to climate deniers, and anti-vaccination positions, lack of trust in science has made the response exponentially more difficult. To deal with both COVID-19 and the impending threat of climate change, altering the perception of science will be essential. Professor Parmet reflected her disappointment that it did not seem as though public health was going through a holistic reform she believes that it needs. Rather, people appear to want to return to the status quo. However, she did hope that some changes would emerge in both more accepted vaccinations, and more importantly, in the way we view public health law. Understanding the necessity of engaging in public health law, would be a very positive change moving forward. The next crucial question facing us is how to reopen? It is still unclear what that will look like, with the summer providing a stark reminder of the danger of reopening too soon.

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Public Health Law Watch’s COVID Law Briefings are co-sponsored by the Center for Health Policy and Law at Northeastern University School of Law, the Center for Public Health Law Research at Temple University Beasley School of Law, the Network for Public Health Law, and the APHA Law Section.