Global Health Law

Global health law encompasses the new legal institutions that structure global health. With a globalizing world connecting societies in shared vulnerability and highlighting the limitations of domestic law, global health law offers the promise and opportunity of bridging national boundaries through public international law to alleviate global health inequities.
PublicationsPresentationsPublic Engagement
Journal of Global Health Law
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May 2026
One Health as a Foundation for Addressing AMR under Global Health Law
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Environmental Health & Tobacco Control
AJIL Unbound
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Mar 2026
Human Rights Limitations in World Health Organization Reforms: Strengthening Human Rights Obligations in Global Health Law to Ensure Global Health Equity
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HIV/AIDS
COVID-19
BMJ
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Feb 2026
WHO Pandemic Agreement is Only the Beginning: Strengthening Implementation to Protect Global Health
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COVID-19
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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Jan 2026
US Global Health Leadership: The First Year of the Second Trump Administration
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U.S. Health Policy
Public Health
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Jan 2026
Human Rights Limitations in Global Health Law Reforms
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COVID-19
Elgar Companion to the Law and Practice of the World Health Organization
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Dec 2025
The Development and Implementation of Human Rights Law in WHO Governance
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HIV/AIDS
COVID-19
Opinio Juris
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Sep 2025
Symposium on the ICJ Climate Change Advisory Opinion: What’s Next? A Proposal for a UN General Assembly Special Session on Climate Change
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Environmental Health & Tobacco Control
Lancet
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Aug 2025
The ICJ Advisory Opinion: A Legal Mandate for Planetary Health
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Environmental Health & Tobacco Control
University of Geneva
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Jun 2025
Global Health Law Summer School
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Health & Human Rights Journal
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Jun 2025
Building Rights-Based Implementation After the Pandemic Agreement
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COVID-19
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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Jun 2025
Legal Preparedness as a Foundation of Global Health Security
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COVID-19
Journal of Law Medicine & Ethics
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Jun 2025
Ten Years of Global Health Law
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COVID-19
Groningen Centre for Health Law
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May 2025
Global Health without US Support: An Existential Crossroads for WHO Governance
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COVID-19
U.S. Health Policy
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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Apr 2025
Global Health Law: Between Hard and Soft Law
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HIV/AIDS
COVID-19
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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Jan 2025
How Did Human Rights Fare in Amendments to the International Health Regulations?
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COVID-19
Science
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Jan 2025
A World Less Safe and Secure
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COVID-19
U.S. Health Policy
JAMA
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Jan 2025
A World Without WHO—A Crossroads for US Global Health Leadership
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U.S. Health Policy
Lancet
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Jan 2025
Ensuring Health at the Heart of Climate Change Advisory Opinion
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Environmental Health & Tobacco Control
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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Oct 2024
The 2024 U.S. Elections: Global Health Policy at a Crossroads
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U.S. Health Policy
Public Health Reports
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Sep 2024
How to Advance Legal Education for Future Public Health Professionals
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U.S. Health Policy
BMJ
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Aug 2024
Global Health Reform Must Continue amid New Infectious Disease Threats
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COVID-19
Journal of Global Health Law
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May 2024
Seventy-Five Years of Global Health Lawmaking under the World Health Organization: Evolving Foundations of Global Health Law through Global Health Governance
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COVID-19
HIV/AIDS
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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May 2024
Teaching Global Health Law: Preparing the Next Generation for Future Challenges
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COVID-19
Health Affairs
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Apr 2024
Centering Law In Public Health Education
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U.S. Health Policy
PLOS Global Public Health
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Apr 2024
The World Health Organization was Born as a Normative Agency: Seventy-Five Years of Global Health Law under WHO Governance
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COVID-19
HIV/AIDS
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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Mar 2024
Shaping Global Health Law through United Nations Governance: The UN High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response
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COVID-19
HIV/AIDS
Consortium of Universities for Global Health
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Mar 2024
Reforming Global Health Law to Ensure Human Rights in Global Health
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COVID-19
University of Toronto
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Dec 2023
Book Launch: Global Health Law & Policy
Watch →
COVID-19
University of Ottawa
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Dec 2023
Human Rights Challenges in Global Health Governance
Watch →
COVID-19
PLOS Global Public Health
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Dec 2023
A Critical Juncture for Human Rights in Global Health: Strengthening Human Rights through Global Health Law Reforms
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COVID-19
HIV/AIDS
Global Health and Welfare Forum in Taiwan
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Nov 2023
Human Rights Challenges in Global Health Governance: Advancing Human Rights in Ongoing Global Health Law Reforms
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COVID-19
Civil Society Alliance for Human Rights in the Pandemic Accord
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Oct 2023
Human Rights Concerns in the Pandemic Accord: Negotiating Draft
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COVID-19
O’Neill Institute Colloquium Series
Presentations
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Oct 2023
Global Health Law & Policy: Ensuring Justice for a Healthier World (U.S. Book Launch)
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COVID-19
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
Publications
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Oct 2023
Shaping Global Health Law through United Nations Governance: The UN High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response
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COVID-19
Global Health Law Consortium / Geneva Summer Schools
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Jun 2023
Global Health Law Summer School
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COVID-19
HIV/AIDS
Health Law Professors Conference
Presentations
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Jun 2023
Reforming Global Health Law to Prepare for Future Pandemic Threats
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COVID-19
Geneva Health Files
Public Engagement
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Jun 2023
Human Rights Challenges in the Pandemic Treaty Negotiations
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COVID-19
Civil Society Alliance for Human Rights in the Pandemic Treaty
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Feb 2023
Human Rights Concerns in Zero Draft of the WHO CA+
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COVID-19
Brocher Foundation
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Jan 2023
Concluding Workshop on Principles and Guidelines for Human Rights and Public Health Emergencies
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COVID-19
Opinio Juris
Public Engagement
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Dec 2022
Advancing Human Rights in Pandemic Treaty Debates
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COVID-19
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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Nov 2022
A Global Health Law Trilogy: Transformational Reforms to Strengthen Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response
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COVID-19
Oxford Commentary on the International Health Regulations (G.-L. Burci, G. Le Moli & J. E. Viñuales) (forthcoming 2023)
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Nov 2022
Implementation of the International Health Regulations: Evolving Reforms to Address Historical Limitations
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COVID-19
HIV/AIDS
International Organizations Law Review
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Jun 2022
The World Health Organization, International Health Regulations and Human Rights Law
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COVID-19
HIV/AIDS
Consortium of Universities for Global Health
Presentations
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Mar 2022
Reforming Global Health Law to Respond to Pandemic Threats
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COVID-19
Bulletin of the World Health Organization
Publications
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Mar 2022
Travel Restrictions and Variants of Concern: Global Health Laws Need to Reflect Evidence
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COVID-19
Carolina Public Humanities
Public Engagement
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Mar 2022
Human Rights in Global Health Governance: Has WHO Risen to Meet the COVID-19 Challenge?
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COVID-19
BMJ Global Health
Publications
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Nov 2021
COVID-19 Raises a Health & Human Rights Imperative to Advance a UN Convention on the Rights of Older Persons
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COVID-19
McGill Perspectives on Global Health
Public Engagement
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Nov 2021
Advancing Human Rights in Global Health through the Pandemic Treaty
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COVID-19
Opinio Juris
Public Engagement
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Nov 2021
Human Rights Must Guide a Pandemic Treaty
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COVID-19
International Pandemic Lawmaking
Publications
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Oct 2021
The Pandemic Treaty as a Framework for Global Solidarity: Extraterritorial Human Rights Obligations in Global Health Governance
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COVID-19
Yearbook of International Disaster Law Conference: Is International Disaster Law Protecting Us?
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Oct 2021
Human Rights Dimensions of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Mainstreaming Human Rights in a Pandemic Treaty
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COVID-19
Public Health Law: Concepts and Case Studies
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Jul 2021
Global Health Law
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COVID-19
Environmental Health & Tobacco Control
BMJ Global Health
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Jul 2021
Decolonising Human Rights: How Intellectual Property Laws Result in Unequal Access to the COVID-19 Vaccine
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COVID-19
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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Jun 2021
Strengthening Human Rights in Global Health Law: Lessons from the COVID-19 Response
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COVID-19
Health Law Professors Conference
Presentations
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Jun 2021
Revisiting the International Health Regulations in the COVID-19 Response: Reforming Global Health Law
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COVID-19
OpinioJuris: In association with the International Commission of Jurists
Public Engagement
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Jun 2021
Reshaping Global Health Law in the Wake of COVID-19 to Uphold Human Rights
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COVID-19
World Health Assembly Side Event
Public Engagement
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May 2021
Strengthening Human Rights to Respond to Pandemic Threats
Watch →
COVID-19
BMJ Global Health
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Apr 2021
Using the COVID-19 Pandemic to Reimagine Global Health Teaching in High-Income Countries
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COVID-19
Consortium of Universities for Global Health
Presentations
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Mar 2021
Harnessing Global Health Law to Respond to Pandemic Threats
Watch →
COVID-19
OpinioJuris: In association with the International Commission of Jurists
Public Engagement
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Feb 2021
Harmonizing Global Health Law and Human Rights Law to Develop Rights-Based Approaches to Global Health Emergencies
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COVID-19
Yearbook of International Disaster Law
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Feb 2021
Book Review: Research Handbook on Global Health Law
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Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law: The Future of Global Health Governance
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Jan 2021
The Role of International Organizations in Global Health Governance
Watch →
COVID-19
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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Dec 2020
The World Health Organization in Global Health Law
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COVID-19
International Organizations Law Review
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Dec 2020
The Stellenbosch Consensus on Legal National Responses to Public Health Risks: Clarifying Article 43 of the International Health Regulations
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COVID-19
International Organizations Law Review
Publications
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Dec 2020
The Stellenbosch Consensus on the International Legal Obligation to Collaborate and Assist in Addressing Pandemics: Clarifying Article 44 of the International Health Regulations
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COVID-19
American Journal of Public Health
Publications
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Oct 2020
Global Policy Surveillance: Creating and Using Comparative National Data on Health Law and Policy
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Global Strategy Lab: News
Public Engagement
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Oct 2020
GHLC Appoints Dr. Benjamin Mason Meier As Its Inaugural Acting Chair
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Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
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Oct 2020
Facilitating Access to a COVID-19 Vaccine through Global Health Law
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COVID-19
Health & Human Rights Journal
Publications
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Aug 2020
Human Rights Must Be Central to the International Health Regulations
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COVID-19
Lancet
Publications
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Jul 2020
Solidarity in the Wake of COVID-19: Reimagining the International Health Regulations
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COVID-19
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
Publications
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Jun 2020
Has Global Health Law Risen to Meet the COVID-19 Challenge? Revisiting the International Health Regulations to Prepare for Future Threats
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COVID-19
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Public Engagement
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May 2020
During a Pandemic, Strong Public Policy Can Save Lives
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COVID-19
Isolated by the Law, Wake Forest School of Law
Presentations
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Apr 2020
How Is Coronavirus Being Managed Globally?
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COVID-19
Keynote Address, American Mock World Health Organization Virtual Summit
Presentations
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Apr 2020
Has WHO Risen to Meet the COVID-19 Challenge?: Revisiting the International Health Regulations
Watch →
COVID-19
Science
Publications
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Mar 2020
Travel Restrictions Violate International Law
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COVID-19
Lancet
Publications
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Feb 2020
Do Not Violate the International Health Regulations during the COVID-19 Outbreak
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COVID-19
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
Publications
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Jan 2020
Introducing Global Health Law
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Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics
Publications
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Sep 2019
Assessing National Public Health Law to Prevent Infectious Disease Outbreaks: Immunization Law as a Basis for Global Health Security
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Women's & Children's Health
Exploring Policy Surveillance Webinar, Center for Public Health Law Research, Temple University
Presentations
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Feb 2019
Global Health Advancement through Policy Surveillance: An Academic Imperative for Empirical Research
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O’Neill Institute for National & Global Health Law, Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, DC
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May 2018
An Interdisciplinary Research Imperative in Global Health Law
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Journal of Transport & Health
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Jul 2017
Autonomous Vehicles: Developing a Public Health Research Agenda to Frame the Future of Transportation Policy
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Medical Law Review
Publications
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Mar 2017
Examining National Public Health Law to Realize the Global Health Security Agenda
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COVID-19
Endeavors
Public Engagement
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Mar 2017
Outsmarting an Outbreak
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UNC Academy Health Chapter, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Presentations
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Nov 2016
Global Health Policy in the 21st Century
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American Public Health Association Annual Meeting, Denver, Colorado
Presentations
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Nov 2016
The Global Health Security Agenda: The Role of Law in Building Public Health Capacity
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Vaccine
Publications
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Jun 2016
Coordinated Regulatory Efforts Needed to Strengthen Travel Related Immunization Requirements Against Importation of Infectious Diseases
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Women's & Children's Health
American Public Health Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, Illinois
Presentations
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Nov 2015
Realizing the Global Health Security Agenda through Public Health Law
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Health Law Professors Conference, San Francisco, California
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Jun 2014
Connecting the Threads: Conceptualizing Public Health Law to Meet Future Challenges
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The Global Community: Yearbook of International Law and Jurisprudence
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Jun 2011
Global Health Takes a Normative Turn: The Expanding Purview of International Health Law and Global Health Policy to Meet the Public Health Challenges of the 21st Century
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Regulatory Frameworks Stakeholder Meeting, Nairobi, Kenya
Presentations
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Dec 2010
Strengthening Structures for Research Ethics in Kenya: Landscape Analysis of the Actors and Processes of Clinical Research Review
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Benjamin Mason Meier JD, LLM, PhD
About
Academic Fields
Global Health Governance
Health & Human Rights
Global Health Law
Health Topics
COVID-19
Environmental Health & Tobacco Control
HIV/AIDS
U.S. Health Policy
Water & Sanitation
Women's & Children's Health