Daynard Richard A, Howard P Tim, Wilking Cara L
Tobacco Control Resource Center, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
J Public Health Policy. 2004;25(3-4):408-17. doi: 10.1057/palgrave.jphp.3190039.
Private enforcement, or litigation, has played a historic role in protecting public health in the United States. Litigation is often employed as a means to protect public health when government regulation is absent or ineffectual. Litigation has been successfully employed to control both asbestos and tobacco and is poised for success in combating the obesity epidemic. Litigation is effective because it makes public industry practices and increases industry self-policing. Litigation related to obesity would likely employ theories of "unfair and deceptive trade practice" or general "personal injury" or tort claims. While opponents to the use of litigation often cite personal responsibility and the individual as the true locus of liability, these arguments fail to take into account the context of an individual's choice. While litigation can be effective, media attention and current political discourse on "tort reform" has engendered a set of legislative actions that would foreclose litigation as a public health strategy.
私人执法，即诉讼，在美国保护公众健康方面发挥了历史性作用。当政府监管缺失或无效时，诉讼常被用作保护公众健康的手段。诉讼已成功用于控制石棉和烟草问题，并且在抗击肥胖流行方面也有望取得成功。诉讼之所以有效，是因为它能曝光行业做法并增强行业自我监管。与肥胖相关的诉讼可能会采用“不公平和欺骗性商业行为”理论或一般“人身伤害”或侵权索赔理论。虽然诉讼的反对者常常将个人责任和个人视为真正的责任所在，但这些论点没有考虑到个人选择的背景。虽然诉讼可能有效，但媒体关注以及当前关于“侵权改革”的政治话语引发了一系列立法行动，这些行动将排除把诉讼作为一种公共卫生策略的可能性。
