Network Report Thursday, March 24, 2022 
Umair A. Shah, Secretary of Health, Washington State Department of Health, will deliver the opening address at the 2022 Public Health Law Conference: Strengthening Protections for Community Health & Advancing Health and Racial Equity, April 25 - 28, 2022, in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Shah is a champion of underserved communities and has charted a new course in health, centering on the cornerstone values of equity, innovation, and engagement. Summit keynote speaker, Dr. Letitia Dzirasa, Baltimore City Commissioner of Health, is a trained pediatrician. She believes that equitable care is a basic right for all and advocates for programs that support the overall health and wellbeing of all Baltimore city residents.
NOTE: The discounted Summit hotel room rate ends April 4th! Learn more and register. 
Medicaid Programs Need to Prepare Now for the End of the COVID Public Health Emergency Barring a new COVID surge, all indications are that the Biden Administration will declare an end to the COVID public health emergency (PHE) sometime this year. Unwinding of the PHE will be a critical event for Medicaid stakeholders. In addition to ensuring basic protections are in place as required by federal law, there are several things that need to be happening in states now to make sure that people know that their coverage may be affected and that they understand the steps they need to take to ensure continuous coverage.
Cultural Broker programs provide culturally relevant, community-based, accessible, preventive health care that is crucial to reducing health disparities and decreasing costs. However, legal frameworks and reimbursement models often fail to capture the essence of community-oriented preventive models of care. To promote and expand programs that truly serve community needs and effectively advance community health, what’s needed are legal and funding mechanisms that support the models of care, like Cultural Brokers, that work rather than conforming the models of care to existing payment structures. 
Declarations of Racism as a Public Health Crisis The information in this resource was derived from issues and questions raised in the Network webinar, "Declarations of Racism as a Public Health Crisis: Utilizing Declarations to Address Health Inequities," which examined the declarations; specific examples of actions committed to or implemented that can set a community on a path for meaningful change; and legal and policy opportunities for implementing these declarations and associated efforts to dismantle structural racism and achieve health equity. The webinar and this related resource can help guide stakeholders in developing and implementing declarations as well as thinking through broader issues connected to race and racism.
The most recent issue of the Network’s Cannabis Quarterly e-newsletter highlighted caselaw that addresses critical issues created by the legalization and regulation of cannabis. The cases of note outlined were related to probation, workers’ compensation, the Fourth Amendment, voter initiatives, the Dormant Commerce Clause, prisons, and state constitutional law. A link to the full opinion is included in the name of each case.
Legality of Expired Naloxone in Missouri In response to the ongoing opioid overdose crisis, all 50 states and the District of Columbia have modified their laws to increase access to naloxone, the standard first-line treatment for opioid overdose. While these laws have been successful in increasing access to this lifesaving medication, few explicitly address the legality of distributing and administering naloxone that is past its expiration date. This fact sheet briefly discusses the efficacy of expired naloxone and examines whether Missouri law permits the distribution and administration of such naloxone. 
Modernizing Consent: Creating a Replicable Model to Advance Health and Equity 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. EST | April 7, 2022 Attend this webinar, sponsored by the Network and All In: Data for Community Health, to learn about a new Consent Service Utility pilot project to modernize the consent process and enable use across healthcare, behavioral health, and social and human services, including housing, and child welfare, among others.
Announcements Collaborative for Anti-Racism and Equity (CARE) The Network and our partners who are working to understand and support the movement to address racism as a public health crisis have formed a collaborative to support individuals and organizations who are engaged in health equity and anti-racism work. The Collaborative’s newly launched website provides access to key resources to assist in advancing health equity, racial equity, and anti-racism action. The Collaborative also works to make connections among those working in this area and to inform solutions that will advance health and racial equity.
The Network has extended the deadline to submit proposals for panels or individual presentations for the Network’s Climate Change, Health Equity, and Public Health Law Summit taking place in Minneapolis, MN from October 12-14, 2022. We encourage anyone working at the intersection of climate change, public health, health equity, and law and policy to apply. We are interested in presentations from a wide variety of perspectives, including public health practitioners, community-based organizations, environmental organizations, attorneys, researchers, community members, and others. Submissions will be accepted until April 8, 2022 at 11:59 Eastern Time.
Worth Sharing Changing the Game Redux: An Updated Playbook for E-Cigarette Regulation at the State and Local Level 11:00 CT | March 31, 2022 This webinar, hosted by the Public Health Law Center, features experts in public health law, policy, and advocacy who will describe the latest on e-cigarette products and regulation, including federal regulatory developments. Presenters will also review key updates in the 2022 version of the Policy Playbook for E-cigarettes, created by the University of North Carolina’s Vaping Prevention Resource and the Public Health Law Center; provide examples of recent local e-cigarette policies in four jurisdictions; and present a wealth of educational and advocacy resources on e-cigarettes.
National Tribal Public Health Virtual Summit 2022 May 9-12, 2022 Hosted by the National Indian Health Board, this Summit will include pre-summit training institutes, interactive workshops, and roundtable sessions focusing on decolonizing public health; COVID-19 and vaccines; tribal public health infrastructure, policy and systems; climate change and environmental health; health promotion and disease prevention; and mental and behavioral health.
Job Opportunities with the Public Rights Project The Public Rights Project, which seeks to redefine local and state public law offices as proactive rights protectors, is hiring for several new roles: Chief Development Officer, Training and Fellowships Director, Operations Associate, and Paralegal. Read about the open positions to learn more or apply. Review of applications begins March 28.
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Thank you! Your interest in the work of the Network is important. Together, we can advance law as a tool to improve public health. Please forward the Network Report and encourage others to join the Network! The Network for Public Health Law provides information and technical assistance on issues related to public health. The legal information and assistance provided in this document does not constitute legal advice or legal representation. For legal advice, readers should consult a lawyer in their state.
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