Journal of law and health最新文献

This note analyzes the "Under 12 Rule" and advocates for its abolishment by examining the consequences and discrimination faced by children under the age of twelve since its enactment in 2005 as well as the benefits stemming from the allowance of using adult lungs for pediatric transplantation. Part II discusses the history of organ transplantation law and the current organ transplantation laws as they stand. Part III provides statistical data demonstrating the disparity between pediatric lung transplant candidates and adult lung transplant candidates. Part IV discusses the reasons for the implementation of the "Under 12 Rule" and analyzes the emerging study associated with the benefits of a lung transplantation using larger lungs. Part V discusses the litigation that ensued due to the "Under 12 Rule" and the legal arguments that were raised. Part VI proposes a new regulation for the pediatric allocation of donor lungs, and Part VII concludes this Note, advocating for the abolishment of the Organ Procurement and Transplant Network's "Under 12 Rule."

The elderly population in the United States will expand drastically over the next few decades; indeed, the number of persons aged 65 or older is expected to swell to approximately 19 percent of the nation's population by 2030--a staggering statistic in light of the fact that the present population of elderly people constitutes fewer than 13 percent. Largely because of this fact, long-term care for this population is becoming increasingly important. Traditionally, elderly persons who lost the ability to fully care for themselves would enter a healthcare facility known as a nursing home. However, a relatively new alternative exists in the form of the assisted living facility ("ALF"). ALFs are the fastest growing form of residential care for the elderly. Between 1998 and the present, the total number of ALFs in the United States increased from around 11,459 to nearly 40,000. This option originated as a "market response to emerging demographic trends... and consumer demands," and as such, is expected to bear the brunt of the expected growth in elderly populations.

On March 23, 2010, President Barack Obama signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). In an effort to rebalance states' spending on long-term services and supports (LTSS) towards home care, PPACA created four new options under Medicaid with which states could provide home care services to their citizens. While PPACA's creation of these four optional Medicaid HCBS programs allows states more flexibility and the capability to provide enhanced home care services to its citizens, it falls short of completely addressing the existing institutional bias in Medicaid by failing to create a mandatory Medicaid state service plan for home care services. Part II describes home care workers, provides a legislative history of home care services, and outlines how Medicaid provides nursing facility care. Part III analyzes the shortcomings of PPACA's plan to improve access and delivery of home care services. Part IV proposes recommendations to better provide the elderly with reliable and affordable home care service.

Over the next decade an increasing number of new "pharmacotherapy" medications will become available with the potential to tremendously impact the use and abuse of illegal drugs and the overall direction of national and international drug policy. These pharmacotherapy medications are designed to block or significantly reduce the "highs" elicited by illegal drugs. Used as part of a drug treatment program, pharmacotherapy medications may provide valuable assistance for people voluntarily seeking a chemical aid in limiting or eliminating problem drug use. However, the tremendously politicized nature of the "drug war" raises substantial concerns that, in addition to those who voluntarily choose to use such medications, some people will be compelled to use them. This article concludes that in the absence of extraordinary circumstances, governmental action forcing or coercing a person to use a pharmacotherapy drug would violate a number of important legal rights. Among the rights implicated by compulsory use of pharmacotherapy drugs are the right to informed consent, the right to bodily integrity and privacy, the protection against cruel and unusual punishment, and the right to freedom of thought.

This article examines the problems currently associated with the practice of telemedicine and suggests that the best solution for this particular field of medicine is a national standard of care. This article also suggests that the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) current functions are easily expandable to the telemedicine context; therefore, the agency should regulate the implementation of such a standard in the telemedicine field. This article proposes that the FDA use medical practice guidelines in developing the applicable standard. Other agencies, such as the American Medical Association (AMA) and other website alliances, could also aid the FDA in implementing this standard because of their experience in setting such guidelines for the traditional medical context. Finally, this article suggests that in implementing the national standard of care, the FDA should increase the standard of care that telephysicians, as compared to traditional physicians, owe their patients because of the risks associated with treating patients in the absence of hands-on consultations. By implementing a national standard of care, problems currently associated with telemedicine will be resolved, and physicians and patients will have more confidence in telemedicine.