Dr. Schlafly correctly notes that the succinct 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution does not address the authority of states to implement public health measures.
In the 1819 U. S. Supreme Court ruling on McCulloch v. Maryland, Chief Justice John Marshall wrote that a constitution that spelled out every detail of its intended application “would partake of the prolixity of a legal code, and could scarcely be embraced by the human mind.”
The Court then unanimously ruled in 1824 that states possess police powers within their borders including the ability to impose quarantine and isolation (Gibbons v Ogden).
This decision was upheld in 1902.1 Thus our statement that health authorities have the constitutional authority to control the spread of dangerous disease is supported by federal legal precedent over a period of two centuries.
We wholeheartedly agree with the importance of strengthening the public’s trust in our health agencies, especially given that some in positions of authority now seek to reduce their long-held, effective powers.
Reference
- 1.American Bar Association. Two centuries of law guide legal approach to modern pandemic. Your ABA April 2020. [accessed June 2022];americanbar.org. [Google Scholar]