Penn Bioethics Seminar Series: William F. Parker, MD, PhD
12:00pm - 1:00pm • via Zoom
2022-04-12 12:00:00 2022-04-12 13:00:00 America/New_York Penn Bioethics Seminar Series: William F. Parker, MD, PhD Errors in converting principles to protocols: Where the bioethics of US COVID-19 vaccine allocation went wrong William F. Parker, MD, PhD Assistant Professor of Medicine, Assistant Director of MacLean Center of Clinical Medical Ethics, University of Chicago Abstract: For much of 2021, allocating the initial scarce supply of COVID-19 vaccines was the most pressing bioethical challenge facing the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) identified three fundamental ethical principles to guide the process: maximize benefits, promote justice, and mitigate health inequities. Dr. Parker will critically examine the practical vaccine allocation protocol (the “Phases”) the committee derived from these principles and argue that critical components of the protocol were internally inconsistent with the stated ethical principles. Finally, Dr. Parker will show how rigorous empirical work and the development of a complete ethical framework that recognizes tradeoffs between principles may have prevented these mistakes and saved lives. For more information, contact Mary Pham, Mary.Pham@pennmedicine.upenn.edu. via Zoom Penn Medical EthicsErrors in converting principles to protocols: Where the bioethics of US COVID-19 vaccine allocation went wrong
William F. Parker, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Assistant Director of MacLean Center of Clinical Medical Ethics, University of Chicago
Abstract: For much of 2021, allocating the initial scarce supply of COVID-19 vaccines was the most pressing bioethical challenge facing the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) identified three fundamental ethical principles to guide the process: maximize benefits, promote justice, and mitigate health inequities. Dr. Parker will critically examine the practical vaccine allocation protocol (the “Phases”) the committee derived from these principles and argue that critical components of the protocol were internally inconsistent with the stated ethical principles. Finally, Dr. Parker will show how rigorous empirical work and the development of a complete ethical framework that recognizes tradeoffs between principles may have prevented these mistakes and saved lives.
For more information, contact Mary Pham, Mary.Pham@pennmedicine.upenn.edu.