Project Background

Salus Populi: Educating the Judiciary about the Social Determinants of Health

Research has shown that laws can significantly impact population health and health equity. Most of this research has focused on the impact of statutes and regulations, but in the U.S. legal system, with its well-entrenched tradition of judicial review, judges wield enormous authority over critical health determinants, including housing stability, socio-economic position (as impacted by education and income), access to health care, structural racism and the quality of the environment.

Salus Populi: Educating the Judiciary about the Social Determinants of Health is a project in collaboration with the Center for Health Policy and Law at Northeastern University School of Law and the Institute for Health Equity and Social Justice Research at Northeastern University that seeks to provide guidance and training to judges on the impact of the law on the social determinants of health.

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