Principles and Practices of Aquatic Law presents the best practices and principles related to aquatic law and risk management. Its focus is injury and death occurring in aquatic environments including the ocean, pools, water parks, canals, rivers, lakes, dams, etc. It discusses the importance of aquatic risk management as it relates to aquatic accident prevention and the concept of duty and liability for a facility's management and staff. It also presents updated and relevant information about beach safety and the importance of hazard identification, warning, and elimination, and provides information for attorneys relating to the process of developing liability theories involving serious aquatic accidents and death. Features Presents a comprehensive resource on the applied practices and principles of aquatic law. Provides information for attorneys for the process of developing liability theories involving serious aquatic accidents and death. Presents updated and relevant information about beach safety and the importance of hazard identification, warning, and elimination. Discusses water-borne contaminants such as cryptosporidium and flesh-eating bacteria. Presents comprehensive public safety and beach management strategies: rip current prediction and monitoring, coastal engineering, drowning and rescue statistics, etc.

Health care reform has been a dominant theme in public discourse for decades now. The passage of the Affordable Care Act was a major milestone, but rather than quell the rhetoric, it has sparked even more heated debate. In the latest edition of Introduction to US Health Policy, Donald A. Barr reviews the current structure of the American health care system, describing the historical and political contexts in which it developed and the core policy issues that continue to confront us today. Barr's comprehensive analysis explores the various organizations and institutions that make the US health care system work-or fail to work. He describes in detail the paradox of US health care-simultaneously the best in the world and one of the worst among developed countries-while introducing readers to broad cultural issues surrounding health care policy, such as access, affordability, and quality. Barr also discusses specific elements of US health care with depth and nuance, including insurance, especially Medicare and Medicaid. He scrutinizes the shift to for-profit managed care while analyzing the pharmaceutical industry, issues surrounding long-term care, the plight of the uninsured, the prevalence of medical errors, and the troublesome issue of nursing shortages. The thoroughly updated edition of this widely adopted text focuses on the Affordable Care Act. It explains the steps taken to carry out the Act, the changes to the Act based on recent Supreme Court decisions, the success of the Act in achieving the combined goals of improved access to care and constraining the costs of care, and the continuing political controversy regarding its future. Drawing on an extensive range of resources, including government reports, scholarly publications, and analyses from a range of private organizations, Introduction to US Health Policy provides scholars, policymakers, and health care providers with a comprehensive platform of ideas that is key to understanding and influencing the changes in the US health care system.

The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 established a voluntary, outpatient prescription drug benefit under Medicare Part D, effective January 1, 2006. Medicare Part D provides coverage through private prescription drug plans (PDPs) that offer only drug coverage, or through Medicare Advantage (MA) prescription drug plans (MA-PDs) that offer coverage as part of broader, managed care plans. Private drug plans participating in Part D bear some financial risk, though federal subsidies cover most program costs in an effort to encourage participation and keep benefits affordable. This book discusses the prescription drug benefit of Medicare Part D. It also examines practices for promoting prescription drug program integrity, and the extent that CMS's oversight of Medicare Part D program integrity, including the program integrity contractors, reflects these practices.

Medicaid is a federal-state entitlement program that pays for health care and related services on behalf of certain low-income individuals. Prescription drugs are an optional Medicaid benefit and all states cover outpatient drugs. States can create formularies, or lists of preferred drugs, but federal rules tend to result in comprehensive coverage, even for beneficiaries enrolled in Medicaid managed care plans. Pharmaceutical manufacturers that voluntarily participate in Medicaid are required to pay rebates to states on covered outpatient drugs, which help Medicaid receive manufacturers' lowest or best price. States then share the rebate they receive from pharmaceutical manufacturers with the federal government. This book discusses Medicaid prescription drug pricing and policies.

This book is an essential guide and support to understanding of the science and policy, procedure and practice that underpins the REACH risk assessments required for the use and placing on the market of chemicals in the European Union. A clear understanding of information provision and how this affects the assessment of chemical safety is fundamentally important to the success of policy on chemicals and ultimately to the sustainability of the chemicals industry. Within the book, the scientific processes that underpin the policy are explained in a practical way. Importantly, it includes coverage of techniques to help solve the problems of using potentially risky and hazardous chemicals through the use of less hazardous alternatives and green chemistry , and also the analysis of the risks of the use of the most hazardous substances against the social and economic benefits of use. Chemical Risk Assessment: A Manual for REACH covers the following main themes: i) Assessment of chemical risk; ii) Risk management; iii) Hazard reduction, substitution and green chemistry; iv) Risk versus benefit socio-economic analysis. The book acts as a practical guide and overview to chemicals risk assessment and risk management (in the EU context), as well as a support text for planning for the challenges of the future, which will see ever-increasing pressure to withdraw hazardous substances from the EU (and global) market, balanced against opportunities for innovation in the development of less hazardous chemicals.

Why does US health care have such high costs and poor outcomes? Dr. David S. Guzick offers this critique of the American health care industry and argues that it could work more effectively by rebalancing care, cost, and access. For decades, the United States has been faced with a puzzling problem: Despite spending much more money per capita on health care than any other developed nation, its population suffers from notoriously poorer health. In comparison with 10 other high-income nations, in fact, the US has the lowest life expectancy at birth, the highest rates of infant and neonatal mortality, and the most inequitable access to physicians when adjusted for need. In An Introduction to the US Health Care Industry, Dr. David S. Guzick takes an in-depth look at this troubling issue. Bringing to bear his unique background as a physician, economist, former University of Rochester medical school dean, and former president of the University of Florida Health System, Dr. Guzick shows that what we commonly refer to as the US health care "system" is actually an industry forged by a unique collection of self-interested and disjointed stakeholders. He argues that the assumptions underlying well-functioning markets do not align with health care. The resulting market imperfections, combined with entrenched industry stakeholders, have led to a significant imbalance of care, cost, and access. Using a nontechnical framework, Dr. Guzick introduces readers to the economic principles behind the function-and dysfunction-of our health care industry. He shows how the market-based approach could be expected to remedy these problems while detailing the realities of imperfections, regulations, and wealth inequality on those functions. He also analyzes how this industry developed, presenting the conceptual underpinnings of the health care industry while detailing its history and tracing the creation and entrenchment of the current federation of key stakeholders-government, insurance companies, hospitals, doctors, employers, and drug and device manufacturers. In the final section of the book, Dr. Guzick looks to the future, describing the prevention, innovation, and alternative financing models that could help to rebalance the priorities of care, cost, and access that Americans need. An online supplement on COVID-19 is available, as is a discussion guide for instructors. To access this supplemental material, please visit www.jhupbooks.press.jhu.edu.

The process of food inspection relies on an inspector's understanding of the intrinsic hazards associated with individual foods. Whereas spoilage can usually be determined through a simple organoleptic assessment, the judgment of whether a food is fit for human consumption requires an evaluation of health hazards, many of which may not be apparent through physical assessment. Instead the inspector must analyse and integrate scientific and handling information to evaluate the potential health risk. Adulteration of foods is also becoming an increasing problem, and the complexity of the food supply chain requires an understanding of risk points to allow targeted inspection and assessment. Food Safety and Inspection: An Introduction focuses on food categories and describes common hazards associated with each, using published peer-reviewed research to explain and evaluate the health risk. It is a practical textbook designed to support the role of food inspection in a modern food industry. There are seven chapters looking at specific aspects of food safety, including a chapter on fraud and adulteration. This book summarises relevant published research to provide a scientific context for specific food safety issues, and is an essential read for anyone interested in becoming a food inspector.

Research findings showed that secondary school students in Hong Kong face many challenges. In particular, morbid emphasis on academic excellence has created much competition and stress in high school students. It was estimated that around one-fifth of secondary school students in Hong Kong had different forms of mental disorders. In a three-year longitudinal study, it was found that the prevalence rates of Internet addiction in Secondary 1, Secondary 2 and Secondary 3 students were 26.4%, 26.6% and 22.5%, respectively. In the same study, suicidal ideation in junior secondary school students was found in more than one-tenth of the students. At the same time, there were more than two-tenths of students showing signs of self-harm and suicidal behaviour in junior secondary years. The number of adolescents experiencing economic disadvantage has increased while family solidarity has dropped in recent years. In spite of these adolescent developmental issues, the lack of life education and life skills training in secondary school students has made the situation worse. Although moral and civic education is one of the pillars in the new 6-year secondary school curriculum, there are several problems involved. First, the coverage on social and emotional learning in the curriculum guide is very thin. Second, although there are curricula materials on life skills training in the field, validated curricula are almost non-existent. In fact, in a review of adolescent prevention and positive youth development programs in Asia, Shek and Yu pointed out that there were very few validated evidence-based programs in Hong Kong. Third, training in social-emotional learning and adolescent prevention programs is grossly inadequate in Hong Kong. Finally, while nobody would dispute the importance of life skills and psychosocial competence, such topics are seldom taught in depth in the school contexts.

This book provides an overview of the voluntary performance standard document for bomb suits for use by certified public safety bomb technicians while performing render safe procedures and disposal activities. It defines both performance requirements and the methods used to test performance. In order for a manufacturer, supplier, or other entity to claim that a particular bomb suit model satisfies this National Institute of Justice (NIJ) standard, the model must be in compliance with the requirements outlined in this standard.

For both student food scientists and experienced professionals, a knowledge of U.S. food law is the foundation that supports an understanding of all industry regulation. Based on a popular internet course, Guide to Food Laws and Regulations, 2nd Edition informs students on the significance, range, and background of food laws and gives tools for finding current regulations. This compact resource outlines major U.S. food laws, factors that led to their passage, and explains the role of key agencies like the FDA and FSIS in regulation and enforcement. Students are directed to internet sites as well as to indexes and resources available from the Federal government. Other topics include religious dietary law, Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations, environmental regulations, HACCP and GMPs, laws governing health claims, and the regulation of biotechnology. New to this edition are six chapters on subjects that have risen to prominence during the last few years: * Poultry Processing Regulations * Federal Trade Commission * Animal Welfare Regulations and Food Production * Egg Laws and Regulations * Catfish Regulations * Locating Laws and Regulations Guide to Food Laws and Regulations, 2nd Edition is an ideal sourcebook for students and professionals in food science and technology, chemistry, biosystems engineering, food animal production and medicine, agribusiness, and other closely related fields.

Mobile phone use in the United States has risen dramatically over the last 20 years, and Americans increasingly rely on mobile phones as their sole or primary means of telephone communication. The rapid adoption of mobile phones has occurred amidst controversy over whether the technology poses a risk to human health. Like other devices that transmit radio signals, mobile phones emit radio-frequency (RF) energy. At high power levels, RF energy can heat biological tissue and cause damage. Though mobile phones operate at power levels well below the level at which this thermal effect occurs, the question of whether long-term exposure to RF energy emitted from mobile phones can cause other types of adverse health effects, such as cancer, has been the subject of research and debate. This book examines what is known about the health effects of RF energy from mobile phones, with a focus on the FCC and FDA's regulatory responsibilities; and other scientific research.

The Robert T Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (the Stafford Act) authorises the President to issue major disaster or emergency declarations in response to catastrophes in the United States that overwhelm state and local governments. This book examines concerns expressed by policymakers and experts that current Stafford Act declarations are inadequate to respond to, and recover from, and presents the arguments for and against amending the act to add a catastrophic declaration amendment.

'European Union Health Law and Policy' is now a meaningful field of study. This monograph elaborates that field through the lens of five important themes. The themes (or orientations) of European Union health law and policy are consumerism; protection of (human) rights; risk regulation; interactions between equality, solidarity and competition; and globalism. The book explores interactions between law, policy and 'governance' in the creation, elaboration, application and development of European Union health law and policy through case studies in key substantive areas, such as the regulation of health research, access of patients to high quality care, health care professional regulation, organisation and funding of health care services, and public health. As European Union health law and policy forms a crucial context within which national health law and policy is developed, the book is essential reading for anyone interested in health law or policy in any EU Member State.