James G. Hodge, Jr., J.D., LL.M., is the director of the Network’s Western Region Office. He is the Peter Kiewit Foundation Professor of Law and Faculty Director of the Center for Public Health Law and Policy, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, Arizona State University. Through scholarship, teaching, and projects, Professor Hodge delves into multiple areas of health law, public health law, global health law, ethics, and human rights. He has published more than 275 articles in journals of law, medicine, public health and bioethics; 2 books in public health law (including Public Health Law in a Nutshell (4th ed. 2021); 25 book chapters; dozens of reports; and guest edited 4 symposium issues.

He is listed among the Top 20 Most-Cited Health Law Scholars in Web of Science (2013-2017) and is ranked among the top 1% of all downloaded authors in the Social Science Research Network (SSRN). The recipient of the 2006 Henrik L. Blum Award for Excellence in Health Policy from the American Public Health Association, Professor Hodge has drafted (with others) several public health law reform initiatives including the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act. His diverse, funded projects include work on (1) emergency legal preparedness; (2) health impact assessments; (3) health information privacy; and (4) vaccination laws and policies. His work on these and other topics has been cited in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, USA Today, NPR, US News & World Report, Time, Newsweek, Forbes, Atlantic, NBC News, CNN, Politico, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Bloomberg News, among others, as well as journals including Science, JAMA, NEJM, and AJPH. During the COVID-19 pandemic alone, Professor Hodge was cited or quoted in over 600 print and online media sources.

Articles & Resources

Federal Court Recognizes State Employment Protections for Medical Cannabis Patients

Law & Policy InsightsCannabis Legalization and Regulation

November 30, 2018
by James G. Hodge, Jr.

Recently, a federal district court in Connecticut diverged from precedent to rule for an employee whose medical cannabis use resulted in a blatant rescission of a prospective job offer. According to the court in Noffsinger v. SSC Niantic Operating Co., d/b/a Bride Brook Nursing & Rehab. Ctr. (Bride Brook), Connecticut’s legal protections from discrimination for employees lawfully using medical cannabis are not barred by contrary federal legal provisions. The holding differs from prior state court decisions finding that employers generally have no duty to accommodate medical cannabis patients.

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Health Justice for People Experiencing Homelessness – Confronting the U.S. Public Sanitation and Hygiene Crisis

Issue BriefHealthy and Affordable Housing

June 10, 2018
by James G. Hodge, Jr.

An outbreak of hepatitis A—a viral liver disease associated with insufficient sanitation, hygiene, and clean water—illuminates systemic failures to meet the health needs of people experiencing homelessness (PEH). This Issue Brief examines the connection between inadequate access to public toilets, hand sinks, showers and laundry facilities and the disproportionate impact of the outbreak on PEH.

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Lessons from Los Angeles: Sanitation as Health Justice for People Experiencing Homelessness

Law & Policy InsightsHealthy and Affordable Housing

June 7, 2018
by James G. Hodge, Jr.

The U.S. is experiencing its worst outbreak of hepatitis A in over 20 years. The outbreak has primarily affected people experiencing homelessness (PEH) due to their lack of access to sanitation and hygiene facilities. In Los Angeles alone, one study found only nine public toilets for every 1,777 PEH. As a result, the city has initiated community and local government interventions designed to address this shortfall.

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A Nation’s Response to the School Shooting in Parkland, Florida

Law & Policy InsightsInjury Prevention and Safety

April 25, 2018
by James G. Hodge, Jr.

In the aftermath of the killing of 17 people and the injuring of 15 others at Marjory Stoneman Douglas (MSD) High School in Parkland, Florida, the Trump administration has considered advocating for various gun control measures, including strengthening of the national background check system (NICS) and a ban on bump-stocks (devices that fully automate semi-automatic weapons). There are additional evidence-based gun control measures that have demonstrated efficacy in preventing gun deaths and injuries in several states.

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Supervised Consumption Spaces as a Harm-Reduction Strategy During the U.S. Opioid Crisis

Law & Policy InsightsOpioid Misuse and Overdose PreventionSubstance Use Prevention and Harm Reduction

March 14, 2018
by James G. Hodge, Jr.

Supervised consumption spaces (SCS) provide safe spaces where persons can consume opioids under the supervision of licensed medical professionals. SCS have proven effective at reducing overdose deaths in those countries where they have been studied. In the U.S., SCS face legal challenges that statewide legal reforms (or in some cases, emergency declarations) seek to address.

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People, Not Problems: Confronting the Health Justice Implications of Laws that Criminalize Homelessness

Law & Policy InsightsHealthy and Affordable Housing

February 13, 2018
by James G. Hodge, Jr.

The creation and enforcement of municipal laws criminalizing homelessness are escalating in U.S. cities. Much like the criminalization of HIV, the criminalization of homelessness creates additional barriers to housing, health care, employment and other basic human needs, perpetuating the cycle of homelessness and corresponding health inequities.

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Declared States of Emergency – Opioid Crisis

ToolkitEmergency Legal Preparedness and ResponseSubstance Use Prevention and Harm Reduction

January 12, 2018
by James G. Hodge, Jr.

High rates of morbidity and mortality among Americans related to opioid use constitute a public health epidemic, leading multiple jurisdictions to declare formal states of emergency or public health emergency. Declaring a state of emergency grants states and localities additional resources to address the epidemic immediately.

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Emergency Legal Preparedness – Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria

PrimerEmergency Legal Preparedness and Response

September 8, 2017
by James G. Hodge, Jr.

Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria have caused massive damage and displaced tens of thousands of people. Federal and state emergency declarations have been made to accelerate relief and recovery efforts through deployment of on-the ground personnel, supplies and health care to help those affected. This Primer provides a snapshot of current emergency declarations and what they authorize.

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Legal Issues in Policies Advanced to Hold Anti-vaccine Physicians Accountable

Law & Policy InsightsMaternal and Child Health

August 30, 2017
by James G. Hodge, Jr. and Leila Barraza

Despite overwhelming research in support of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommended vaccination schedule, some physicians continue to advise patients against following the schedule, and some voice their criticism of vaccinations publicly. Such criticism can contribute to lower vaccination rates, which in turn increases the risk for the spread of vaccine preventable diseases. But policy options to address this issue are problematic.

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