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Medical Ethics

Reflecting on a year shaped by COVID-19
Overhead view of a medical worker in full PPE discussing a COVID spit test with a student on campus.

Reflecting on a year shaped by COVID-19

Penn Today brings together noteworthy stories and images from the past year and highlights ways for individual members of the Penn community to share their personal experiences.

Erica K. Brockmeier , Katherine Unger Baillie

No, vaccine seekers, your condo is not a congregate living facility

No, vaccine seekers, your condo is not a congregate living facility

Emily Largent of the Perelman School of Medicine explained why apartment buildings and condo associations shouldn’t encourage their residents to cut the COVID-19 vaccine line by claiming to live in “congregate settings.” “I would also like to be vaccinated,” she wrote. “But each of us has an ethical obligation to wait our turn.”

Age-based vaccine distribution is not only unethical. It’s also bad health policy

Age-based vaccine distribution is not only unethical. It’s also bad health policy

PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel and Emily Largent of the Perelman School of Medicine collaborated with Govind Persad of the University of Denver on an op-ed about equity in COVID-19 vaccine distribution models. “Age-only distribution is unethical, likely illegal and bad health policy,” they wrote.

Can long-term care employers require staff members to be vaccinated?

Can long-term care employers require staff members to be vaccinated?

Emily Largent of the Perelman School of Medicine and the Law School spoke about the ethics of paying employees to get vaccinated. “There’s good evidence from behavioral economics that offering money signals taking risks,” she said. “These vaccines really are safe and effective, so we don’t want to solidify people’s fears.”

Race versus time: Targeting vaccine to the most vulnerable is no speedy task

Race versus time: Targeting vaccine to the most vulnerable is no speedy task

Harald Schmidt of the Perelman School of Medicine said that the U.S. has an opportunity to prove that it’s invested in repairing longstanding health disparities through the COVID-19 vaccine rollout process. “The longer-term implication of how we dealt with social justice will be very powerful—so we do have to get this right,” he said.

Gutmann, Moreno talk ‘Pandemic Ethics’ at Power of Penn event
Mitchell Gutmann and Moreno at Power of Penn Zoom event

Gutmann, Moreno talk ‘Pandemic Ethics’ at Power of Penn event

The co-authors of ‘Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven but Nobody Wants to Die’ joined virtually with moderator Andrea Mitchell and Penn Alumni to discuss the many bioethical concerns that have only heightened with COVID-19’s spread.

Lauren Hertzler

Two Penn faculty named Hastings Center Fellows
Side-by-side headshots

Scott D. Halpern and Jennifer Prah Ruger have been named Hastings Center Fellows in recognition of their outstanding accomplishments in deepening public understanding of complex ethical issues in health, health care, science, and technology.

Two Penn faculty named Hastings Center Fellows

Scott D. Halpern and Jennifer Prah Ruger are acknowledged for their outstanding accomplishments in ethics and health.

Kristina Linnea García

How can the world allocate COVID-19 vaccines fairly?
Hands holding a box of COVID vaccine vials.

How can the world allocate COVID-19 vaccines fairly?

It’s an ethical question many Penn experts are contemplating. One fact is certain, they say: Distribution must not exacerbate disparities and inequities in health care.

Michele W. Berger