Health, justice, and the environment.
In this article, we argue that the scope of bioethical debate concerning justice in health should expand beyond the topic of access to health care and cover such issues as occupational hazards, safe housing, air pollution, water quality, food and drug safety, pest control, public health, childhood nutrition, disaster preparedness, literacy, and many other environmental factors that can cause differences in health. Since society does not have sufficient resources to address all of these environmental factors at one time, it is important to set priorities for bioethical theorizing and policy formation. Two considerations should be used to set these priorities: (1) the impact of the environmental factor on health inequality, and (2) the practicality of addressing the factor.
Resnik
David B
DB
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health, Box 12233, Mail Drop NH 06, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA. resnikd@niehs.nih.gov
Roman
Gerard
G
D001675:Bioethics; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D014943:Global Health; D006292:Health Priorities; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000941:ethics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012923:Social Class; D012935:Social Justice / Q000941:ethics*