Policy Issues in Science, Technology and Global Health

Description

This course focuses on key issues emerging at the intersection of biotechnology/medicine, public policy and markets.  It begins with an historical overview of the 20th century progressive and eugenic movements and then analyzes contemporary health policy issues and politics from multiple perspectives. Major issues addressed in the course include drug markets and regulation, cognitive and human enhancement, infectious disease epidemics, agricultural technology, indigenous perspectives on biotechnology, and possible (technological) futures for death and extinction in a post-genomic era. Basic life science and health concepts will be introduced when necessary, but a scientific background is not required to take this course since our focus is on society, policy and politics.  Students also gain experience with major concepts in policy analysis and approaches to public policy foresight and futures studies.

Major questions that we will consider include:

1) When and why did health become a political issue subject to Government intervention?  
2) What are the ethical and public policy consequences of politicizing the human body?
3) How do categories and identities such as “autistic” or “schizophrenic” emerge and become standardized ways of classifying people?
4) Should the State regulate reproductive or enhancement decisions?
5) Should there be any limits to the Government’s coercive power during a health
crisis?
6) How is health distributed around the world as a consequence of history, class, ethnicity and other variables?
7) Is the category “human” due for an upgrade?