Conference Announcement: THE FUTURE OF HEALTH LAW

       BU'S SCHOOL OF LAW, PUBLIC HEALTH TO HOLD CONFERENCE ON

                      THE FUTURE OF HEALTH LAW

                           March 24, 2008
                             Boston, MA


     "Health reform is a central theme in the 2008 Presidential
     election campaign so now is a critical time to explore
     what health law may look like in the future and the
     challenges our society will face as a result," said Wendy
     K. Mariner, JD, LLM, MPH, a professor of Health Law,
     Bioethics, and Human Rights at Boston University School of
     Public Health and professor of law at BU's School of Law.
     These challenges include integrating the new genetics into
     care, improving patient safety, determining societal,
     corporate and individual responsibility for improving
     health, reconciling intellectual property and expanded
     access to new technologies around the world, and whether
     these challenges can be addressed within a coherent legal
     framework.

     The Future of Health law is the subject of this year's Pike
     Conference, co-sponsored by Boston University's Schools of
     Law, and Public Health (BUSPH). The conference, which will
     be held on Monday, March 24 beginning at 8:30 a.m. at the
     George Sherman Union Conference Auditorium, 775
     Commonwealth Avenue, 2nd floor, Boston, brings together a
     distinguished group of scholars in law, medical ethics, and
     public health.


     TOPICS & PRESENTERS:

     Among the other topics and presenters:

     John A. Robertson, JD, the Vinson and Elkins professor of
     law at The University of Texas School of Law at Austin,
     will speak on Genome Scans and the Future of Health Law,
     addressing issues surrounding genetic privacy and the right
     to know.

     Barry R. Furrow, JD, professor of law and director of the
     Health Law Institute at Drexel University, will explore the
     topic Hospitals at the Center of Liability: Tracking
     Convergence of Storm Fronts.

     Leonard H. Glantz, JD, associate dean for Academic Affairs
     and professor of health law at BUSPH and professor of law
     at BU's School of Law, will examine whether law should
     attempt to "fix" people's unhealthy behaviors, such as
     tobacco use, in a presentation titled Discrimination on the
     Basis of "Unhealthy Behaviors": Should there be a law
     banning the practice?

     Michael A. Grodin, MD, professor of Health Law, Bioethics,
     and Human Rights at BUSPH, along with David Ozonoff, MD,
     MPH, chair emeritus of the Department of Environmental
     Health and a professor of public health at BUSPH, will both
     address the role of Physicians and Scientists in the
     Courtroom.

     Kevin Outterson, JD, LLM, associate professor at Boston
     University's School of Law, will examine access to drugs
     and vaccines in his talk Putting Patients First: Global
     Public Health and Intellectual Property, drawing upon his
     recent work to streamline licensing of medical innovations
     to improve their availability in developing countries.

     George J. Annas, JD, MPH, the Edward R. Utley Professor of
     Health Law, Bioethics, and Human Rights and Chairman,
     Department of Health Law, Bioethics, and Human Rights,
     BUSPH, Professor of Law at BU's School of Law, will examine
     Metaphors for the Emerging Field of Health Law, Bioethics
     and Human Rights and Wendy Mariner, will discuss Picking a
     Paradigm for Health Law.

     Wendy E. Parmet, JD, the George J. and Kathleen Waters
     Matthews Distinguished University Professor of Law at
     Northeastern University School of Law will serve as a
     commentator at the forum.

     Honored at this year's conference will be former Boston
     University's Law-Medical Research Institute (1958-66)
     associate professor, Irving Ladimer, JD, SJD, as the 2008
     recipient of the Pike Award. His work at the Law-Medicine
     Research Institute, included coediting a landmark
     collection of articles and documents on the regulation of
     human subjects research, Clinical Investigations in
     Medicine: Legal, Ethical, and Moral Aspects (1963). He is
     nationally recognized for his pioneering work in medical
     malpractice arbitration at the American Arbitration
     Association and serves currently as Director of Research
     and Education at the Academic Health Professionals
     Insurance Association.


     FURTHER INFORMATION:

     The annual Pike Conference is held to honor Neal Pike, a BU
     School of Law graduate, distinguished lawyer and lifelong
     advocate for individuals with disabilities. The conference
     is free and open to the public.

     For further information, please contact:

     CONTACT:       Gina M. DiGravio
     Tel:           617-638-8491
     Email:         MAILTO:gina.digravio@bmc.org
Posted 3/7/08