While, I can not find any specific events that have motivated their thinking about disaster and health, I believe this organization is motivated by the idea that people should be provided the health care they need despite their social or economic status.
Brian Conover, the man convicted of abandoning the waste, had left vials of blood along with needles that still had blood on them. The law requires that he properly dispose of these materials, but he had left the objects in his home when he moved out.
"Anna Pou, defended herself on national television, saying her role was to “help” patients “through their pain,” a position she maintains today"
"The laws also encourage prosecutors to await the findings of a medical panel before deciding whether to prosecute medical professionals. Pou has also been advising state and national medical organizations on disaster preparedness and legal reform; she has lectured on medicine and ethics at national conferences and addressed military medical trainees"
The Red Cross was started during the Civil War to provide care to wounded soldiers.
Doctor Adriana Petryna holds a Ph.D in Anthropology from the University of California, Berkeley. She holds an M.A. in Anthropology as well as a B.S. in Architecture from the University of Michigan. She is a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and has been focused on nuclear science and medicine, and it's cultural and political ramifications.
This system is funded by federal tax dollars.
“What they’re calling for instead is a divestment from mass incarceration, along with an end to bail, and an investment in health care, living wage jobs, and mental health treatment that would lead to safer communities.”
"'Sometimes [the detainees] tell [the guards], 'we not locking in becuase its too hot,' Jackson says. Such refusal has often meant calling in the Emergency Services Unit, the jail version of a riot squad. Referred to as 'the turtles' by some detainees, the ESU is known to use extreme force when bringing people back to their cells"
“safety sometimes gets pitted against profitability”
“Consequently, we see a trend where mitigating the consequences of a nuclear disaster is also increasingly being regarded as an international task.”
“We need to create a credible organization-one that combines the legitimacy of the United Nations agency and the executive vigor of an industry group.”
The arguments in the article are primarily supported by analysis of narratives given by patients who participated in an interview.