States of Health: The Ethics and Consequences of Policy Variation in a Federal System

by Leslie P. Francis, John G. Francis Narrated by Linda Jones

Overview

Is it morally or politically acceptable to have wide differences in the quality of health care when one crosses a state line? Federalism in the United States has been defended as a political structure that enables people to coexist in a single polity despite deep disagreements about some of the most fundamental aspects of human life. Federalism can create space for difference and latitude for innovation, and its flexibility in levels of policy enactment can allow for fruitful state-level experimentation, especially in the areas of health and health care, which has long been celebrated.



However, when federalism results in significant differences in health care availability within a single country, it can generate ethical challenges for health care providers and their patients. These challenges often engender questions of what should be considered an enduring right: Which freedoms should transcend borders?



States of Health identifies the practical relevance of federalism to people facing ethical decisions about health and health care, and it considers the theoretical justifications for permissible differences among states. It asks whether authority over important aspects of health is misaligned in the United States today, with some matters problematically left to the states while others are taken over by the federal government.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"In 1932 U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis famously compared individual states to laboratories trying 'novel social and economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country.' States of Health comprehensively examines the ways in which federalism in health care sometimes makes both our physical health and democracy sicker. From the spread of pandemics to travel for abortion, this book is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand what ails U.S. health care and how to fix it." — I. Glenn Cohen, James A. Attwood and Leslie Williams Professor of Law, Harvard Law School

"This remarkable volume explores the operation of federalism in the United States and its effect on bioethics and healthcare. It includes meticulous historical context and examination of the strengths and weaknesses of our system of divided government. The authors argue that American federalism has both led to useful outcomes for many health-related challenges and impeded integrated national responses to exigent failures in equity, inequality, and public health for all citizens. From the impact of evolving technology to consideration of current moral and cultural debates about end-of-life decisions, reproductive justice, gender identity, healthcare, and abortion, profound questions are deftly articulated and explored." — Christine Durham, Chief Justice Utah Supreme Court (ret.); Senior of Counsel, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

Product Details

BN ID:	2940192375518
Publisher:	HighBridge Company
Publication date:	08/20/2024
Edition description:	Unabridged