Mermin Seth E, Graff Samantha K
Public Health Law & Policy, 2201 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94612, USA.
Am J Public Health. 2009 Oct;99(10):1799-805. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2008.151183. Epub 2009 Aug 20.
Public health advocates and scientists working on obesity prevention policy face challenges in balancing legal rights, individual freedom, and societal health goals. In particular, the US Constitution and the 50 state constitutions place limits on the ability of government to act, even in the best interests of the public. To help policymakers avoid crossing constitutional boundaries, we distilled the legal concepts most relevant to formulating policies aimed at preventing obesity: police power; allocation of power among federal, state, and local governments; freedom of speech; property rights; privacy; equal protection; and contract rights. The goal is to allow policymakers to avoid potential constitutional problems in the formation of obesity prevention policy.
致力于预防肥胖政策的公共卫生倡导者和科学家在平衡法律权利、个人自由和社会健康目标方面面临挑战。特别是，美国宪法和50个州的宪法对政府的行动能力加以限制，即使是出于公众的最佳利益。为帮助政策制定者避免跨越宪法界限，我们提炼了与制定预防肥胖政策最相关的法律概念：警察权；联邦、州和地方政府之间的权力分配；言论自由；财产权；隐私权；平等保护；以及契约权。目标是让政策制定者在制定预防肥胖政策时避免潜在的宪法问题。
