Schedule

All times are Eastern Standard Time.

Tuesday, September 13, 2022

7:00 a.m.	Registration Opens
7:00-7:45 a.m.	Continental Breakfast
8:00 – 9:15 a.m.	Breakfast Keynote
9:30 – 11:00 a.m.	Concurrent Sessions One   Collection and Dissemination of Data to Reduce Health Inequities Data plays an essential role in reducing and eliminating health inequities. If marginalized communities are not counted, their needs will not be clearly identified or addressed. Collection and dissemination of data, and creation of data infrastructure, without a strong equity lens, will only reinforce health disparities and structural inequities. This session will explore how law and policy impact the collection and dissemination of data disaggregated by race, ethnicity, sexual orientation and gender identity, and how data infrastructure can be structured in a way that promotes racial equity and the public good. • Amy Hawn Nelson, Ph.D., director of Training for Social Policy, Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy  • Carrie Waggoner, J.D., deputy director, Network for Public Health – Mid-States Region Office • Stephen Murphy, J.D., senior attorney, Network for Public Health – Mid-States Region Office Health Equity and the Digital Divide Lack of access to, or lack of skill in using technology, can be harmful to health and wellbeing. The digital divide is the gap between people and communities who have access to and skill in using technology—such as computers, mobile phones, and broadband—and those who have limited or no access or technological skill. The divide creates and exacerbates health inequities that stem from the inability to access care via telehealth, low or no access to technology-based aspects of education or employment, and limited access to communications about public health emergencies. This session will address the impact of the digital divide on particular demographics and the role that law, policy, and communities can play in ameliorating the divide. • Martha Coates, M.S.N., R.N., C.R.N.P., A.G.P.C.N.P.-BC, geriatric nurse practitioner, Drexel University • Angela Foreshaw-Rouse, M.S., manager, AARP Pennsylvania • Kati Moran, senior manager, Telehealth and Performance Improvement, Community Care Cooperative
11:00-11:30 a.m.	Networking Break
11:30- 1:00 p.m.	Concurrent Sessions Two Tribal Access to Health Data This session is geared to public health officials and their legal counsel on the laws governing sharing health data with Tribal nations and Tribal Epidemiology Centers (TECs). HIPAA expressly permits sharing with Tribes identifiable health data of its members and TECs are recognized under 25 U.S.C. § 1621m as public health authorities with inherent rights to the data collected on tribal people. Yet, many healthcare organizations and public health officials do not know of, or are unclear on these obligations. Similarly, noncompliance with those federal requirements creates the risk to state, county, and local governments of litigation expenses, long-term compliance monitoring, and liability for monetary penalties. As important, this lack of data sharing impedes Tribal efforts to improve members’ and communities’ health, which additionally hinders local public health agencies’ efforts to fight disease and epidemics. The recognition and appreciation of tribes and TECs as public health authorities are critical for achieving health equity in these communities. This session will demonstrate the mutual value of improved data sharing to address health inequities, improve surveillance activities, and appropriately target programs, as well as increase attendees’ knowledge of compliance requirements • Charles Abourezk, J.D., attorney, former general counsel, Great Plains Tribal Leaders Health Board • Meghan O’Connell, M.D., M.P.H., CDC Foundation/Great Plains Tribal Leaders Health Board’s Tribal Epidemiology Center • Chris Alibrandi O’Connor, J.D., deputy director, Network for Public Health Law – Mid-States Region Office Reproductive Health Care and Health Equity Across the country, access to safe and effective reproductive health care is disparate, with marginalized populations suffering under legal and policy constraints that profoundly limit care. The decision from the Supreme Court in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health allows for expansion of those constraints, exacerbating existing health inequities and creating new ones. Legal experts will dissect the Dobbs decision, explain the public health impact, and specifically address the role of Tribal, state, and local health agencies in states that have or are likely to ban abortion and contraception access and states that will protect abortion and contraception access. • Liza Fuentes, Dr.P.H., research scientist, Guttmacher Institute • Rachael Lorenzo (Mescalero Apache/Laguna Pueblo/Xicana), co-founder/executive director, Indigenous Women Rising  • Rachel Rebouche, J.D., LL.M., dean, Temple University Beasley School of Law People with Disabilities and Health Equity People with disabilities face myriad health challenges and are often marginalized in our health care and public health systems, creating persistent health inequities. This session will speak to the role law and policy plays in exacerbating these inequities and in minimizing them, with a focus on specific populations and public health issues. • Doron Dorfman, J.S.D., associate professor of Law, Seton Hall University Law School • Marissa Band, J.D., managing attorney, Community Legal Aid Society • Liz Bowen, Ph.D., Rice Family fellow, The Hastings Center
1:00 – 2:30 p.m.	Lunch Plenary Cannabis Legalization: Legislator Panel This session will focus on issues of social justice, equity, consumer safety, local control, youth access, and other important public health issues related to cannabis. State legislators will discuss the critical challenges and opportunities presented by the adult-use legalization process. • Mathew R. Swinburne, J.D., associate director, Network for Public Health Law – Eastern Region Office • Maryland Senator Jill Carter, Esq., Democrat, District 41, Baltimore City • Maryland Senator Brian Feldman, Democrat, District 15, Montgomery County • Maryland Delegate David Moon, Democrat, District 20, Montgomery County
2:30 – 4:00 p.m.	Concurrent Sessions Three Critical Cannabis Case Law Developments Hear from a panel of legal experts who will discuss and analyze recent cannabis case law that critically impacts public health. • Austin Bernstein, J.D., M.Ed., director, Attorney General Alliance’s Cannabis Project • Justin Tepe, J.D., co-founder, Cannabis Law practice at Goodell DeVries • Bridget Hill-Zayat, J.D., executive director, Maryland Wholesale Medical Cannabis Trade Association The Evolution of Cannabis Science In the session, experts from the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy will discuss the basics of cannabis science, our evolving understanding of the medical benefits and health risks associated with cannabis, and the challenges of cannabis research. • Leah Sera, PharmD, M.A., B.C.P.S., Maryland School of Pharmacy  • Chad Johnson, Ph.D., Maryland School of Pharmacy • Dr. Andrew Coop, Ph.D., Maryland School of Pharmacy • Carrie Hempel, D.O., Maryland School of Pharmacy Vaccination Policy and Health Inequities The rapid development of a vaccine for COVID-19 and federal funding of free vaccinations played a significant role in the pandemic with respect to public health and the future of vaccine law and policy. Free access to COVID vaccines did not equate with equitable access. Opposition to vaccine mandates and incentives reinvigorated the anti-vaccine community and led to proposed (and passed) legislation to reduce mandatory childhood vaccinations across the country. This session will discuss inequities associated with the COVID vaccine and how changes in vaccine law could further embed inequities. • Andrea Thoumi, M.P.P., M.Sc., Duke Margolis Center for Health Policy  • Stephen Thomas, Ph.D., University of Maryland School of Public Health   • Michael Ulrich, J.D., M.P.H., Boston University School of Public Health • Allison Kelliher, M.D., at large director, Association of American Indian Physicians
4:00 – 5:00 p.m.	Cannabis Regulatory Agencies Cultivating the Cannabis Regulatory Environment There are challenges in creating and enforcing a cannabis regulatory system that promotes equity and public health. In this session, state cannabis regulators will discuss these challenges and emerging trends in both medical and adult-use cannabis regulation. • Gillian Schauer, Ph.D., executive director, Cannabis Regulators Association (CANNRA) • Jeff Brown, executive director, New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission • Lila McKinley, supervising staff attorney, Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection • Michele Nakata, chief, Hawaii Office of Medical Cannabis Control and Regulation • Will Tilburg, executive director, Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission
5:00 – 7:00 p.m.	Reception

Wednesday, September 14, 2022

8:00 – 9:00 a.m.	Networking Breakfast
9:15 – 10:45 a.m.	Plenary Session The Future of Federal Cannabis Policy This session will focus on efforts to change the legal status of cannabis under federal law, federal efforts to facilitate scientific cannabis research, and the impacts of federal banking laws on the cannabis industry. • John Hudak, Ph.D., deputy director, Center for Effective Public Management • Seth Gitner, J.D., associate, Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP • Paul Demko, reporter, Politico
11:00 – 12:30 p.m.	Concurrent Sessions Four Addressing Social Justice and Equity in the Shadow of the War on Drugs While communities of color are disproportionately impacted by the War on Drugs, these same communities are being left out of the legal cannabis boom. This session will focus on how to address the issues of restorative justice, including expungement of cannabis crimes, community reinvestment, and social equity measures in the cannabis industry. • Mathew R. Swinburne, J.D., associate director, Network for Public Health Law – Eastern Region Office • Chelsea Higgs Wise, M.S.W., executive director, Marijuana Justice • Tianna Mays, J.D., associate director, Criminal Justice Project at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law • Jacquie Cohen Roth, M.S., founder/CEO, CannabizMD Cannabinoids and Hemp Derived Products: Addressing the Regulatory Void Following the 2018 Farm Bill’s legalization of industrial hemp, there was an explosion of products containing an array of cannabinoids (see e.g., CBD, Delta-8 THC, Delta-10 THC). These products present a serious public health challenge given the lack of cannabinoid research and federal regulation of these products. This session will examine the health risks presented by these products, existing federal authority that could be used to address these products, and state efforts to fill the regulatory void. • Doris Hamilton, hemp program manager, Kentucky Department of Agriculture • Gillian Schauer, Ph.D., executive director, Cannabis Regulators Association (CANNRA) • Kay Doyle, J.D., director of U.S. public policy & public affairs, Greenwich Biosciences, Jazz Pharmaceuticals • Ilse Peterson, M.P.H., director – Research & Strategy, Faegre Drinker Substance Use and Health Equity In the session, speakers will discuss the dynamics of harm reduction and health inequities. Though modest and slow, some progress has been made to mitigate the epidemic of drug-related harm by altering the outdated, punitive-focused approach to drugs and individuals who use them. These harm reduction strategies can reduce health inequities that persist in the substance use arena, but careful policy design is imperative to avoid further entrenchment or growth of the disparities. • Saba Rouhani, Ph.D., assistant professor of Epidemiology, NYU School of Global Public Health • John Pamplin II, Ph.D., assistant professor, Columbia Mailman School of Public Health • Rajani Gudlavalleti, M.P.P., director of mobilization, Baltimore Harm Reduction Coalition • Corey Davis, J.D., M.S.P.H., deputy director, Network for Public Health Law — Southeastern Region Office; director, Network for Public Health Law Harm Reduction Legal Project