Site • RSS • Apple PodcastsDescription (podcaster-provided):
A discussion of the defining ethical challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, featuring world-renowned experts in ethics, public health, law, economics, public policy, and beyond. Hosted by Joshua Preiss, Director of Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) at Minnesota State University, Mankato and the author of Just Work for All: The American Dream in the 21st Century (Routledge 2021). Visit pandemic-ethics.com for more information on recent and upcoming episodes.Themes and summary (AI-generated based on podcaster-provided show and episode descriptions):
➤ Covid-19 ethical dilemmas • vaccine mandates, trials, prioritization, global access • public-health modeling, evidence, lockdowns • risk, essential work, care labor, nursing, childcare • inequality, race, poverty • business duties, property law, debt relief, post-pandemic recoveryThis podcast examines ethical questions raised by the Covid-19 pandemic through conversations with scholars and practitioners in philosophy, public health, law, economics, and public policy. Across episodes, it focuses on how societies should make high-stakes decisions under uncertainty, and what principles should guide governments, employers, universities, and businesses as they respond to a public health emergency.
A major theme is vaccine ethics: whether vaccination ought to be mandatory, what mandates would require in practice, and how to justify them legally and morally. The show also explores fairness in vaccine development and distribution, including how to prioritize limited supply, how to conduct trials once vaccines receive emergency authorization, and how intellectual property rules shape global access—especially for poorer countries. Related discussions address global poverty, proposals for expanding vaccine availability, and the responsibilities of pharmaceutical companies and international institutions.
The podcast frequently connects health policy to broader economic and social structures. It considers the role of scientific modeling and data collection in policymaking, and asks what “trust the science” should mean when evidence is evolving. It also looks at pandemic-driven debt, potential sovereign debt crises, and principles for repayment and debt relief that avoid reproducing injustice.
Work and care are recurring topics, including the risks borne by essential workers and the status, resources, and power of care workers such as nurses and childcare providers. Additional episodes investigate how business responsibilities shift during crisis, how property and contract structures affect security and inequality, and how racial and historical injustice shape vulnerability and outcomes during the pandemic.
| Episodes: |
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Should Vaccination Be Mandatory? 2021-May-04 44 minutes |
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Modeling the Covid-19 Pandemic 2021-Apr-05 42 minutes |
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Responsibility for Debt and Crisis 2021-Mar-22 47 minutes |
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Covid, Poverty, and Intellectual Property 2021-Feb-24 42 minutes |
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Covid-19 and the Future of Work 2021-Feb-17 34 minutes |
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Vaccine Ethics 2021-Feb-08 27 minutes |
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Childcare in the Time of Covid 2021-Feb-01 27 minutes |
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Nursing in a Pandemic 2021-Jan-18 31 minutes |
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Business Ethics in a Pandemic 2021-Jan-10 48 minutes |
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Care in Crisis 2021-Jan-04 52 minutes |
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Race, Justice, and the Pandemic 2020-Dec-16 35 minutes |
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Who Gets the Vaccine First? 2020-Dec-10 25 minutes |
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Property Law and the Pandemic 2020-Dec-02 22 minutes |
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Risk, Ethics, and Public Policy During the Covid-19 Pandemic. 2020-Nov-22 45 minutes |