PHL 318 - Bioethics and the Law

3 credits
An initial survey of the foundations of ethical theory and the relation to applied ethics, with the primary course content focusing on the ethical and philosophical dimensions of emerging issues in the life sciences and biotechnology, on one hand, and law and public policy on the other. These issues include: definitions of human life, higher vs. full brain death, physician-assisted suicide, medical futility, organ distribution/transplantation/sales, xenograft, stem cell research, therapeutic/reproductive cloning, global AIDS crisis and developed/developing world issues, generic licensing of pharmaceuticals, reproductive technologies, human subject research, informed consent, developing world human experimentation, and genetic testing.