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HOUSTON, Dec. 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on not only public health and the economy, but according to University of Houston Law Center Assistant Professor Valerie Gutmann Koch, it has also raised large legal and ethical issues.
Koch, co-director of the Law Center's Health Law & Policy Institute, has been extensively studying the effects and legal implications of the pandemic. Several of her articles have been published in scholarly journals and by news organizations.
Some of the biggest legal challenges being raised involve tensions between individual autonomy such as stay-at-home orders and mask mandates and societal justice, according to Koch. Lawmakers and scholars are struggling to balance these interests in ways that respect individual liberties, while also protecting communities and vulnerable individuals.