GLOBAL HEALTH LAW COURSE
Description

This course explores major global health challenges and the concepts of health laws and human rights as applicable to global health. Students will be introduced to current and emerging global health priorities and analyze possible solutions through the reform of health-related laws as a component of health systems. The course also explores the links between human rights and public health policy. Classroom discussions will examine how international law (including international human rights norms and standards) can be an important tool for formulating and reviewing health-related laws and addressing: current global health challenges and emergencies, improving mental health systems and their response, creating smoke free environments, reducing the incidence of HIV/AIDS and other diseases, reducing maternal mortality and protecting older persons and other groups in situations of vulnerability during health emergencies and pandemics.

The objectives of the course are:

• To help students understand what are the main global health challenges, how to improve health and achieve equity in health through health-related law;

• To identify the determinants of health and analyze the components of health systems and global health priorities;

• To help students understand international human rights law through a focus on public health and the health of groups in situations of vulnerability;

• To identify the theoretical and practical tensions between the goals of human rights protection and public health programs, as well as their potential to further shared goals;

• To examine ways in which human rights lawyers, public health officials, NGOs, UN agencies, universal and regional human rights bodies and other stakeholders can work together to achieve the goals of improving health-related laws; and

• To enable students to work together in evaluating and analyzing health-related laws and human rights issues from a domestic and international legal perspective.

Lectures, discussions, presentations and guest speakers (with experience in the field) will enable students to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to understand global health challenges and to apply international law instruments and tools towards the formulation and reform of health-related laws, the prevention of disease and disability and reduction of health-related abuses and suffering. Students’ abilities to develop original ideas, concept papers and engage in critical thinking on health law and human rights will be reflected in their research assignment selection, presentations and writing.