PHIL 299 - Public Health Ethics

Formerly PHIL 321
3 Credit(s) | Lecture | Graded or pass/fail
Course can be counted for credit once

Description:
Public health refers to society’s organized measures to improve population health. Some public health measures are quite intrusive. For example, seatbelt laws or restrictions on the sale of large scale sodas. Some think that these measures are unjustified because it should be up to the individual to choose how to lead his or her life. By examining the initiatives and laws designed to reduce tobacco use, we will examine how a government’s obligation to respect individual freedom should be weighed against an obligation to prevent disease and improve population health. Other public health measures seem woefully inadequate given the inequalities that affect disadvantaged groups in society. For example, risk factors for obesity are not simply linked to personal choice, but to food security and access to healthy foods. By examining the data on health disparities and social determinants of health, we will explore how far a government’s obligations should extend to narrow inequalities that put certain groups at increased risk of disease and poor health outcomes.

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