Not saints, but healers: The legal duties of health care professionals in the AIDS epidemic

Abstract

Albert Camus closes his narrative of The Plague by observing of those who 'fought against its terror and relentless onslaughts' that although they were 'unable to be saints', they refused 'to bow down to pestilences, [and strove] their utmost to be healers'. Neither law nor ethics expects sainthood or martyrdom of health care professionals. Nor can the law force people to be courageous or virtuous. But the law does set a minimum standard of conduct below which health care professionals cannot fall without risking lawsuits, loss of license, or loss of employment. This essay explores the legal framework within which health care professionals must work as 'healers' in the AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) epidemic, and suggests ways in which the law can reinforce an ethic of professionalism in the face of this modern plague.