The expanded development and deployment of high-quality reusable masks and biodegradable disposables can further public health goals while protecting the environment from pandemic-induced pollution.
The Public Purpose
The Graduate Journal of American University's School of Public Affairs
Health
The People’s Response Act: Prioritizing Public Health in the Justice System
A transformation of policing to center public health and safety will deliver more equitable criminal justice outcomes, and more importantly, save lives.
Current Reproductive Health Methods Already Decrease Abortion Rates
Abortion bans endanger reproductive health and don’t reduce abortions. So, what can decrease abortion rates? Easy access to birth control substantially reduces unwanted pregnancies without harming reproductive health.
How to Incentivize the Government to Prevent the Next Disaster
The past two decades have afforded the United States no shortage of disasters. From Hurricane Katrina to the 2008 financial crisis, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and the ongoing pandemic, each year seems to bring a new disaster, with the mega-crisis of global warming looming on the horizon.
U.S. Cuts to Foreign Aid Exacerbate Yemen’s Humanitarian Crisis
The cutting of U.S. foreign aid to Yemen, a country already experiencing the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, further aggravates the food insecurity that has left millions of Yemenis on the brink of starvation.
The Obstacles in the Way of Biden’s Healthcare Plan
Biden’s healthcare policies, if they make it into legislative proposals, will face heavy opposition from healthcare industry lobbyists, Republicans in Congress, and the conservative super-majority on the Supreme Court.
Congress Needs to Pass a Substantive Economic Stimulus Package
With millions contracting COVID-19 and an ever-rising death toll, the U.S. government has failed, not only to adequately address the rapid spread of disease and death, but to provide a social safety net for all Americans.
COVID-19 Exposes Inhumanity in the Social Justice System
COVID-19 has and continues to impact each of us differently; however, the pandemic has further revealed how the United States has continuously failed to address the country's disparities. COVID-19 has shown Americans that minority communities are the most...
COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Must be Equitable and Cooperative
The COVID-19 pandemic may feel like it is never going to end. In the United States alone, we are seeing a surge larger than ever, with over the 150,000 new cases daily hitting most severely across middle America and growing in the Northeast and West. However, a recent...
Utilizing Modern Monetary Theory to Provide COVID-19 Relief to the American People
Since the start of the COVID-19 global health pandemic, Congress has authorized approximately $3 trillion of relief to businesses, corporations, individuals, state and local governments and more. However, the largest portion of spending went toward businesses and...
Empowering Minority Serving Institutions to Increase Diversity in the Medical Community
Grappling with the COVID-19 crisis and response has pivoted attention to another key area of concern facing the scientific community: the lack of diversity in the medical community. Diversity in the medical community is critical for ensuring that treatments and...
Primed for Disaster: How Racial Disparities are Impacting Nursing Home Residents During COVID-19
To date, over 200,000 Americans have died from the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 40% of these deaths have occurred among residents of nursing homes, though this group makes up less than 1% of the U.S. population. This reality makes it critical that policymakers do...