Dr Edana Richardson and Dr Aisling McMahon have published an article in the Journal of Medical Ethics blog entitled. “Financing the Covid-19 Health Response: Resource Allocation, Accountability & Social Bonds”. In this article, they examine the role of social and sustainability bonds as a mechanism which can be used to rapidly mobilise funds towards financing the Covid-19 health-related response. The funding raised via social and sustainability bonds can be directed at international, national and corporate projects targeting social issues and outcomes, including healthcare services, related infrastructure and supplies. As such, social and sustainability bonds have many advantages in generating finance to respond to the healthcare crises posed by Covid-19. However, the article argues that using social and sustainability bonds as a means of health financing also poses important ethical questions around the accountability of bond issuers’ decision-making, and that such questions warrant greater scrutiny by the global health and bioethics community. The full article is available here: https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-ethics/2020/11/23/financing-the-covid-19-health-response-resource-allocation-accountability-social-bonds/
Dr Richardson is an Assistant Professor in Maynooth University Department of Law. She teaches Islamic finance law and capital markets law and is currently researching in the area of responsible finance. Dr McMahon is an Assistant Professor in Maynooth University Department of Law where she teaches patents, health and biotechnologies, and contemporary issues in medicine and the law. Her research focuses on medical and patent law, and she is particularly interested in the role of patents as private governance instruments and the impact of intellectual property holders decisions on access to and delivery of healthcare.