Emma Kaeser, J.D., is a staff attorney with the Network for Public Health Law’s Mid-States Region. Her current areas of focus include legal and policy issues related to privacy, health information sharing, and public health authority. She is particularly interested in work to dismantle punitive systems that harm communities and to advance equitable access to health-affirming services and conditions. At the Network, Emma provides support in the form of research, legal technical assistance, training, and practical resources to assist those working to promote healthier communities.
Before joining the Network, Emma served as a law clerk for the United States District Court for the Central District of California. Prior to that, she worked as a litigation associate at a law firm and had an active pro bono practice advocating for the rights of youth with disabilities through direct services and impact litigation. Emma holds a bachelor’s degree in public policy from Princeton University and a law degree from Stanford Law School. While in law school, Emma worked with the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality, researching and developing resources on school policing and exclusionary school discipline as drivers of racial health inequity among youth.
Join us for a discussion of how the law can provide guidance in defining your public health work. Hear from colleagues about how they are navigating a challenging post-pandemic landscape and how the way in which we approach our work shapes public health practice, the law that governs our practice, and the public’s health.
In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, Network attorneys and staff have identified six key policies with the potential to significantly improve mental health outcomes across the United States. This policy brief covers a wide range of areas focused on communities and those who work to support communities. It is designed as a practical resource for public health professionals, leaders, and partners, offering strategies to enhance mental health and well-being while reducing disparities in mental health care.
On March 18, 2024, the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a bulletin updating guidance on the use of online tracking technologies by HIPAA covered entities and their business associates. The bulletin, which updates OCR’s December 2022 guidance on the same topic, follows renewed warnings from OCR on the dangers of online tracking technologies and comes amidst increased attention to the privacy risks that these technologies pose
Text messaging can provide health departments with an efficient means of sharing timely public health information such as guidance, announcements, and emergency alerts. While texting can be an effective tool for protecting the public’s health, it raises important privacy issues that health departments must consider when developing texting initiatives. This fact sheet examines one piece of that legal framework: the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and regulations implemented by the Federal Communications Commission that govern certain kinds of texting.
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic there has been an onslaught of legal challenges to public health authority, some of which cite a rule known as the nondelegation doctrine. The nondelegation doctrine purports to promote accountability by shifting power from unelected officials to legislatures. But in practice, limiting health officers’ authority can impede a health department’s ability to protect communities from harm.
In the U.S., every state health department operates a newborn screening (NBS) program. NBS programs result in the early diagnosis of serious conditions in over 13,000 babies annually, making it a powerful public health intervention. As NBS requires the collection of personal information, it raises important considerations regarding individual privacy, autonomy, and ethical uses of data.
In September, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights and Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology announced the release of an updated Security Risk Assessment Tool. The tool is designed to make it easier for entities and business associates covered under HIPAA to understand and remediate risks to electronic health information.
