CFP2

The aims of this study are to assess: (1) whether state reporting laws for novel H1N1 influenza and emerging infections impact the ability of public health to collect data elements on individual cases, (2) whether state reporting laws for novel H1N1 influenza and emerging infections impact the ability of public health to develop recommendations for disease prevention, control, and treatment, and (3) the effect of “home rule” in a state’s infectious disease reporting structure on the state’s ability to develop such recommendations. The research team will conduct mapping and implementation studies by collecting data in three areas: legal authority, epidemiologic data collected on novel H1N1 influenza cases, and CDC and state recommendations. Methods will include an inventory of each state’s reporting laws/structure for emerging infections and interviews with state officials. Findings have the potential to impact law, public health policy, and epidemiology. Infectious disease reporting is the foundation for public health’s core functions in infectious disease prevention and control. Novel H1N1 influenza provides a critical example of the difference in states’ ability to promptly gather relevant data on a disease of national importance. This study has great public health significance because it is extremely important to understand the role law played in the differences among states. Law is a potentially modifiable factor and policymakers may choose to improve state laws if value is demonstrated. By addressing the proposed questions, we hope to assess the public health benefit/detriment of differing state authorities for reporting. Findings may impact policy by showing the effect of reporting laws on public health response and suggesting modifications to disease reporting laws that states may want to adopt.

Consuming too much salt (sodium chloride) puts Americans at risk for high blood pressure, a leading cause of heart attack and stroke.  In 2010, U.S. medical and lost productivity costs from high blood pressure alone were more than $76 billion. Researchers estimate that reducing sodium in the U.S. food supply could prevent more than 100,000 U.S. deaths annually. Beginning in 2011, the National Conference of State Legislatures and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention will partner to review what public health policy options are available to help reduce salt in the foods we eat as a means of reducing high blood pressure, its costs and health consequences; and study which options may achieve the greatest consensus among policymakers.

New drugs extend life and improve its quality. Drug patents provide an incentive to develop new drugs, but patented drugs are often expensive and they block the sale of inexpensive generic copies. Generic firms have grown active in challenging the validity of drug patents over the past two decades, in an effort to enter the market prior to expiration of the patent. This project examines these legal challenges and their effects on the entry of generic drugs and access to medicines. These analyses will help inform current policy debates about how well pharmaceutical patent laws and regulations balance innovation and access, and their effect on public health.

Dental erosion is a widespread and increasing problem. This study will answer the question of what law and legal practices impact the consumption and purchase in Central Appalachia of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and citric acid drinks (CADs) that adversely affect oral health. The study will generate original data from dentists and residents of Central Appalachia concerning the oral health of the residents, the consumption and purchase of SSBs and CADs, and the social acceptability to the residents of Central Appalachia of legal interventions regarding the sale and availability of SSBs and CADs.