Supreme Court Impacts in Public Health Law: 2021-2022

Abstract

The role of the U.S. Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) in adjudicating public health laws and policies may have reached its zenith during its 2021-2022 term. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, a politically-polarized society, and shifting legal paradigms, SCOTUS undertook a sensational array of cases. Vaccination mandates, reproductive rights, climate change, drug reimbursements, opioid abuses, gun regulations, LGBTQIA+ discrimination, mental health claims, and child welfare substantially occupied the Court’s docket. Fundamental freedoms are apt for constitutional reconsideration in the backdrop of extensive battles over conservative and liberal approaches. As a new majority on the Court re-envisions constitutional law for the 21st century, health impacts may be extensive. These key themes are examined below in 10 select areas of SCOTUS cases this term, both decided and forthcoming, whose outcomes may substantially affect public health laws and policies for decades.

Keywords: supreme court, constitution, public health, rights, liberty, agency, authority, cases, judiciary