Flint Water Crisis: A Case Study in the Erosion of Public Accountability in Public Health
This article examines the Flint water crisis as a case study in what "public" means in public health. It details how the governor-appointed emergency manager switched Flint's water supply without proper safeguards, leading to lead poisoning of thousands of children. The piece critiques the sustained indifference to citizen complaints and the failure of state emergency management systems, using the disaster to explore broader questions about public accountability, governmental negligence, and the erosion of democratic oversight in public health decision-making.
Key quotes
Flint, Michigan, is suffering one of the worst manmade water poisoning disasters in recent memory as a result of negligence under state emergency control.
The lead poisoning of thousands of children over the past several years occurred because the governor-appointed emergency manager elected to switch Flint's water supply without safeguarding against the leaching of lead from old piping that was exposed to acidic waters.
Sustained indifference to suggestions out of Flint over the past two years about the potential toxicity of the water exacerbated the situation, contributing to the circumstances in which citizens of the city now live.
From the article
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