An argument for the centrality of rights in health security, and how
to apply ethical principles to protecting those rights during public
health crises. In recent years, efforts to respond to infectious
diseases have been described in terms of national and global security,
leading to the formation of the field of “health security.” In War
on All Fronts, Nicholas G. Evans provides a novel theory of just
health security and its relation to the practice of conventional
public health. Using COVID-19 as a jumping-off point to examine wider
issues, including how the US thinks about and prepares for pandemics,
Evans shows the flaws in using the “war metaphor" and how any
serious understanding of health security must square with human
rights—even when a disease poses a threat to national
security. Evans asks what ethical principles justify
declaring, and taking action during, a public health emergency such as
the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The relevant principles, he argues,
parallel those of the ethics of armed conflict. Just war theory,
properly understood, begins with pacifism and a commitment to the
right not to be killed and then steps back to ask under what limited
conditions it is permissible to kill. In a similar way, a just health
security must also begin with the idea that public health should hold
human rights sacrosanct and then ask under what limited conditions
other concerns might prevail. Evans’s overall goal is to formulate a
guide to action, particularly as the world deals with the fallout of
the COVID-19 pandemic. Turning to the transition from war back to
peace in public health, he looks at reparation, rebuilding, and the
accountability of actors during the crisis.
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A Theory of Health Security Justice
Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9780262374217
Publisert
2022
Utgiver
Random House Publishing Services
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter