LibGuides: Public Health Law: Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

Introduction

Chronic diseases, including heart disease, cancer, and stroke, are the leading causes of death in the United States. They are also among the most costly, in terms of the strain on resources that they place on our system. Although genetics will always play an important role in our health, the risks of many of these illnesses can be substantially lessened with proper diet, exercise, and lifestyle choices. Other chronic diseases that receive considerable research and public attention are obesity, diabetes, and illnesses that derive therefrom.

There is much controversy surrounding nearly every measure that the government puts into place to try to control the spread of chronic disease. Some members of the health community and the public-at-large see these measures as an attempt to control the overall health and welfare of the community, and as an attempt to reduce the ever-ballooning costs for healthcare that we, as a nation, face. Others deem these measures too paternalistic, arguing that the government should not become a "nanny state" overly concerned with what people do in the privacy of their own home or regarding their own lifestyle choices. The ultimate tension is between the legitimacy of the state concerned with the overall good of the people versus the rights and liberties of the citizens to make their own choices.

Online Resources

PHLR Chronic Disease
Systematic review summarizing the evidence supporting the effectiveness of specific laws or policies.
WHO Chronic Diseases and Health Promotion
World Health Organization
Successful State-Based Community Based Interventions
A Trust for America’s Health report on successful interventions by CDC funded programs.
WHO Chronic Respiratory Diseases
World Health Organization Program that provides support to Member States in their efforts to reduce the toll of morbidity, disability and premature mortality related to chronic respiratory diseases, and specifically, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
CDC's Public Health Genomics State and Local Toolkit
The Office of Public Health Genomics (OPHG), CDC developed this toolkit so that state public health departments, health care providers and payers, and anyone interested can quickly learn about Tier 1 applications, partnership building, and other action steps that can lead to saving lives.
WHO Global InfoBase
A data warehouse that collects, stores and displays information on chronic diseases and their risk factors for all WHO member states.
NACCHO Chronic Disease Prevention
National Association of County & City Health Officials Team is working with the goal of engaging and enhancing local health department's ability to expand evidence- and practice-based chronic disease prevention activities in their communities and promote change at the policy, systems, and environmental levels in order to reduce the burden of chronic diseases.
CDC Chronic Disease Cost Calculator
This useful tool allows you to calculate the monetary costs that Medicaid spends on chronic diseases in your locale. Legislators, teachers, administrators, and students can use this tool to compare the efficacy of preventative programs vs. merely the treatment of chronic disease.

Seminal Cases for Obesity

New York State Restaurant Association v. New York City Board of Health
State restaurant association brought action challenging city law requiring certain restaurants to post calorie content information on their menus and menu boards.
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556 F.3d 114 (2009)
Pelman v. McDonald's ("Pelman I")
Parents brought action on behalf of children against fast-food corporations and restaurants, alleging violations of state consumer protection laws and negligence in connection with children's over-consumption of fast-food products.
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237 F.Supp.2d 512 (2003)
Pelman v. McDonald's ("Pelman II")
Complaint dismissed; leave to amend denied.
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2003 WL 22052778
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Pelman ex rel v. McDonald's ("Pelman III")
Chain moved for more definite statement of plaintiffs' claims.
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396 F. 3d 508 (2nd Cir. 2005)
Pelman et al. v. McDonald's Corp
Consumers moved for class certification but numerosity was not satisfied. Motion denied.
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272 F.R.D. 82 (2010)
Westlaw login required
City of Cleveland v. State of Ohio (2013)
The Ohio Court of Appeals affirmation of the State's power to take public health measures including, in this case, the ban of trans-fats in food. This case also examines preemption.

Obesity

Online Resources

Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity
- Non-profit research and public policy organization devoted to improving the world’s diet, preventing obesity, and reducing weight stigma
PHLR Nutrition and Weight Status
WHO Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health
ChangeLab Solutions Childhood Obesity
Public Health Law Center Healthy Eating
Healthy Eating Research
- National program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) that supports research on environmental and policy strategies that have strong potential to promote healthy eating among children
CDC's PHLP Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity
- Zoning to Encourage Healthy Eating - contains model laws and policies
CDC's Adult Obesiy Facts and State Map

Articles

Assessing Laws and Legal Authorities for Obesity Prevention and Control
- 37 J.L. Med. & Ethics 28-36 (Supp. 1 2009)
Improving Laws and Legal Authorities for Obesity Prevention and Control
- 37 J.L. Med. & Ethics 62-75 (Supp. 1 2009)
Myths, Presumptions, and Facts about Obesity
- N Engl J Med 2013; 368:446-454
A Legal Primer for the Obesity Prevention Movement
- Am J Public Health. 2009 Oct;99(10):1799-805
Public Health Law and the Prevention and Control of Obesity
- Milbank Q. Mar 2009; 87(1): 215–227
New Developments in the Law for Obesity Discrimination Protection
- Obesity. 2013 Mar;21(3):469-471
Obesity--The New Frontier of Public Health Law
The Continuing Tensions Between Individual Rights and Public Health

Warning Labels for Sugary Drinks - New Model Legislation

State Surveys

NCSL Health Innovations State Law Database
- NCSL’s Health Program seeks to help state legislators and their staff learn about promising health system reforms and policy innovations that promote a more efficient and effective health care system and improve Americans’ health.
- This database of recently enacted laws includes information on state health transformation initiatives and related changes in state statutes, as well as a description of topics and categories of legislation for 2015-2020.
Childhood Obesity – 2011 Update of Legislative Policy Options

Videos

The Obesity Epidemic
- Video from the CDC explaining the many factors that have contributed to the obesity epidemic, and showcases several community initiatives taking place to prevent and reduce obesity

CDC Chronic Disease Prevention Blog

Cancer

Agencies & Other Organizations

American Cancer Society
The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)
- The specialized cancer agency of the World Health Organization.
CANCERMondial
- Provides access to various databases containing information on the occurrence of cancer worldwide held and managed by the Section of Cancer Information (CIN) of IARC.
American Society of Clinical Oncology

Journals

Journal of Cancer Policy
- An international, open access journal which publishes research and reviews on global cancer policy. The journal encompasses all aspects of cancer policy and public health.

Articles & Reports

Cancer Facts & Figures 2020
- American Cancer Society's annual report on cancer in the United States
World Cancer Reports
A Synopsis of the 2010 National Assessment of State Cancer Cluster Investigations and Protocols
- Summary of how the States are addressing Cancer Clusters. Several graphics and state-to-state comparisons
Assessing the Quality of Cancer Care: An Approach to Measurement in Georgia
- Describes and recommends a set of 52 quality indicators with which the Georgia Cancer Coalition can measure Georgia's progress in improving cancer care and reducing the number of cancer cases and deaths

Diabetes

Diabetes is the 7^th leading cause of death in the U.S. and costs the nation $58 billion on average in any given year. State legislatures throughout the country are actively exploring policy options to address the more than 26 million Americans currently living with diabetes. States fund prevention, education and self-management programs in various ways, often consisting of federal and state dollars, and through state Medicaid programs. (NCSL)

Online Resources

Articles

Diabetes Care in the School and Day Care Setting
- Includes a good summary of federal laws that protect children with diabetes
Troubled interventions: public policy, vectors of disease, and the rhetoric of diabetes management
- J Med Humanit. 2013 Mar;34(1):15-32.
What's Preventing Us from Preventing Type 2 Diabetes?
- N Engl J Med 2012; 367:1177-1179.

State Laws

Cardiovascular Disease

Agencies & Other Organizations

Reports

Public Health Achievements

National High Blood Pressure Education Program (1972)

Texts & Other Books

Fit Not Fat, 1st Edition by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Staff
Call Number: RA645.O23 S27 2010
ISBN: 9264063676
Publication Date: 2010-10-22

Videos

Super Size Me
In SUPER SIZE ME, filmmaker Morgan Spurlock unravels the American obesity epidemic by interviewing experts nationwide and by subjecting himself to a "McDonald's only" diet for thirty days straight. The film covers corporate responsibility, nutritional education, school lunch programs and how we as a nation are eating ourselves to death.
Weight of the Nation
This documentary series examining the obesity crisis in the U.S. looks at the health risks of being overweight, weight-loss ideas, childhood obesity, and efforts to improve the public health.
Food, Inc.
The USDA and FDA are supposed to protect the public, so why is it that both government regulatory agencies have been complicit in allowing corporations to put profit ahead of consumer health, the American farmer, worker safety, and even the environment? As chicken breasts get bigger and tomatoes are genetically engineered not to go bad, 73,000 Americans fall ill from powerful new strains of E. coli every year, obesity levels are skyrocketing, and adult diabetes has reached epidemic proportions.
Peter Jennings Reporting: How to Get Fat Without Really Trying Synopsis
Film reveals how federal government agricultural policies and food industry practices are contributing to America's growing obesity epidemic.