Mental Stimulus Causing Mental Disability: Compensability Under the Pennsylvania Workmen\u27s Compensation Act

Section 301(a) of the Pennsylvania Workmen\u27s Compensation Act, which provides that employers shall be liable for injuries or death of employees, has increasingly been interpreted to include disability stemming from emotional stress alleged to be work-related. The author examines the complex issues involved in determining whether such disability should rightly be considered an injury, and thus compensable, under the Act. After a general discussion of the policy motivations behind workmen\u27s compensation programs, the author turns to the inherent problem of proving the causative agents of mental disability. Following this discussion, the author conducts a survey of recent commonwealth court decisions which deal with this form of disability. In conclusion, the author recommends a specific standard that should be applied in emotional stress cases which would work to prudently limit claims in this developing area

Constitutional Law - Commerce Clause - Tenth Amendment - State Immunity - Labor Relations

The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has held that the operation of a mass transit system is not among those functions traditionally performed by state and local governments so as to prevent application of the Fair Labor Standards Act to bus operators employed by a publicly operated transit system. Kramer v. New Castle Area Transit Authority, 677 F.2d 308 (3d Cir. 1982), cert. denied, 103 S. Ct. 786 (1983)

Providing antiretroviral care in conflict settings.

There has been an historic expectation that delivering combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) to populations affected by violent conflict is untenable due to population movement and separation of drug supplies. There is now emerging evidence that cART provision can be successful in these populations. Using examples from Médecins Sans Frontières experience in a variety of African settings and also local nongovernmental organizations' experiences in northern Uganda, we examine novel approaches that have ensured retention in programs and adequate adherence. Emerging guidelines from United Nations bodies now support the expansion of cART in settings of conflict

Simplified ART Delivery Models Are Needed for the Next Phase of Scale Up

Nathan Ford and Edward Mills discuss broader issues in HIV care delivery raised by research carried out by Lawrence Long and colleagues into down-shifting HIV care to primary health facilities

Health, human rights, and the conduct of clinical research within oppressed populations

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Clinical trials evaluating interventions for infectious diseases require enrolling participants that are vulnerable to infection. As clinical trials are conducted in increasingly vulnerable populations, issues of protection of these populations become challenging. In settings where populations are forseeably oppressed, the conduct of research requires considerations that go beyond common ethical concerns and into issues of international human rights law.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>Using examples of HIV prevention trials in Thailand, hepatitis-E prevention trials in Nepal and malaria therapeutic trials in Burma (Myanmar), we address the inadequacies of current ethical guidelines when conducting research within oppressed populations. We review existing legislature in the United States and United Kingdom that may be used against foreign investigators if trial hardships exist. We conclude by making considerations for research conducted within oppressed populations.</p