Federalism’s Fallacy at the Forefront of Public Health Law

Abstract

Amid undulating conceptions of the role and prowess of federalism emerges its central constitutional role: protecting American liberties against unwarranted governmental intrusions. To the extent that federalism is used as a guise for withdrawing fundamental rights to abortion by the U.S. Supreme Court in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, individual rights are sacrificed in contravention of constitutional structural norms.

Keywords: Supreme Court, Constitution, federalism, rights, liberty, public health, Dobbs, Jacobson, reproductive, structural, cohesive, due process, individual, states, federal