Principles,patient welfare and the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000

The law surrounding decision-making for adults who lose their capacity varies considerably internationally. In many cases legislation has taken a protective and consequently restrictive role for adults with incapacity and often the issue of capacity assessment within the appropriate legal framework is circumvented. In Scotland, the introduction of the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 modernised that nation's approach to incapable adults. This article describes briefly the pre-2000 Act situation in Scotland, discusses the main provisions of the Act, reviews the use of principles in incapacity legislation in Britain, and discusses issues relating to patient welfare. The use of principles to extend patient autonomy into incapacity is demonstrated and compared with the English and Welsh Mental Capacity Act 2005 (the 2005 Act) through a discussion of how the principles in each of those Acts promotes particular ideologies of decision making. Finally, the article examines recent Scottish case law relating to the 2000 Act and discusses how the courts are currently interpreting the principles of the Act.     

The politics of universal access: the Massachusetts Health Security Act of 1988

This article analyzes the passage of an unprecedented state law, promising every resident access to affordable health insurance. The Massachusetts Health Security Act of 1988 was the product of a set of political and financial pressures that had been developing for nearly a decade. Hospital, insurance, and business interests were unable to reach a new accommodation on hospital payment. This logjam created the opportunity for a policy breakthrough, but did not inherently lend itself to progressive reform. It was consumer activism that forced the traditional powers in health policy to address the interests of the uninsured. By imposing a more public-interest agenda on the process, consumers were able to change the configuration of the stalemate, but could not resolve it. The particular terms of the stalemate, however, made possible a new, more aggressive role for state government in health policy. Unable to satisfy their competing interests within a policy framework that had universal access as a goal, traditionally powerful interest groups found themselves increasingly dependent on the state to broker a new agreement. While the many concessions made to these groups are likely to prove to be the bill's undoing, the unraveling of the agreement will not end the story. The same pressures which led to passage of the Massachusetts law and which are now causing other states to act will continue to exert their effect until a more durable solution is found.     

简评《刑法修正案(七)》

本次《刑法》修改的特点有二一是广泛征求专家学者与民众意见,体现了民主立法精神;二是顺应社会发展,提升刑法抗制犯罪效能。《刑法修正案(七)》完善了走私珍稀植物、珍稀植物制品罪的对象规定以及为该罪增加拘役刑等九个方面内容;同时,新增了"违规交易、违规提示他人交易罪"等9个罪名。