The ethics of vaccination: individual, collective, and institutional responsibilities
Vaccination raises ethical issues about the responsibilities of individuals, communities, and states in preventing serious and potentially life-threatening infectious diseases. Such responsibilities are typically taken to be about minimising risks for those who are vaccinated and for those around them. However, there are other ethical considerations that matter when defining the responsibilities of different actors with regard to vaccination. Such ethical considerations are not often given due considerations in the debate on vaccination ethics and policy.

Thus, in this talk Dr Alberto Giubilini aims at offering a defence of compulsory vaccination taking into account not only the importance of preventing the harms of infectious diseases, but also the value of fairness in the distribution of the burdens entailed by the obligation to protect people from infectious diseases. He will offer a philosophical account of the key notions involved in the ethical debate on vaccination, of the types of responsibilities involved, of the possible types of vaccination policies ranked from the least to the most restrictive, and of the reasons why compulsory vaccination is, from an ethical point of view, the best policy available, as it is the most likely to guarantee not only protection from infectious diseases, but also a fair distribution of the burdens and responsibilities involved.

The talk will be followed by a drinks reception, all welcome
Date: 5 March 2019, 17:00 (Tuesday, 8th week, Hilary 2019)
Venue: Oxford Martin School, 34 Broad Street OX1 3BD
Venue Details: Corner of Catte and Holywell Streets
Speaker: Dr Alberto Giubilini (Oxford Martin Programme on Collective Responsibility for Infectious Disease)
Organising department: Oxford Martin School
Organiser: Oxford Martin School (University of Oxford)
Organiser contact email address: events@oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk
Part of: Oxford Martin School Events
Topics:
Booking required?: Required
Booking url: https://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/event/2663
Booking email: events@oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk
Audience: Public
Editor: Hannah Mitchell