• Women’s Health Rights can Guide International Climate Litigation: KlimaSeniorinnen v. Switzerland before the European Court of Human Rights

    Women’s Health Rights can Guide International Climate Litigation: KlimaSeniorinnen v. Switzerland before the European Court of Human Rights

    Hannah van Kolfschooten and Angela Hefti All over the world, individuals are taking governments to court for their role in climate change, or rather, their “climate inaction”. The 2022 Global Trends in Climate Change Litigation Policy Report shows that strategic litigation cases to enforce climate laws and policies have doubled since 2015. On 29 March 2023, the… Read more

  • The Council of Europe’s Artificial Intelligence Convention: Implications for Health and Patients

    The Council of Europe’s Artificial Intelligence Convention: Implications for Health and Patients

    The Council of Europe, the most important international human rights organization on the European continent, currently is drafting a Convention on Artificial Intelligence, Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law (AI Convention). The Convention aims to protect fundamental rights against the harms of Artificial Intelligence (AI), and is expected to become a global leading convention, as non-European states such… Read more

  • Five “Big MedTech” Myths about Medical AI Debunked

    Five “Big MedTech” Myths about Medical AI Debunked

    Criticism of the European Union’s AI Act by the HealthTech Industry is often based on incorrect assumptions, and is in conflict with health and fundamental rights principles, write Hannah van Kolfschooten, Janneke van Oirschot, and Claudia Nicastro. The European Union’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) Act is a world-first attempt to create comprehensive AI regulation, to protect both the… Read more

  • Health protection is non-negotiable in the AI Act negotiations

    Health protection is non-negotiable in the AI Act negotiations

    A health-centric approach to the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Act is essential for the protection of health and fundamental rights of European citizens, write Hannah van Kolfschooten and Janneke van Oirschot.  The European Commission’s proposal for an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Act has been the topic of a heated debate since its publication in April 2021. Civil society organisations… Read more

  • Call for Action: High Time to Prioritise Health in the EU Artificial Intelligence Act

    Call for Action: High Time to Prioritise Health in the EU Artificial Intelligence Act

    Last year, the European Commission published its long awaited legislative proposal on artificial intelligence (AI): the Artificial Intelligence Act (AIA). Since then, a heated debate has been going on about its contents, as many civil society organisations believe the proposal falls short on fundamental rights protection. Various committees within the European Parliament have proposed amendments to the Commission’s AI proposal… Read more

  • A Health-Oriented Approach to the Declaration on European Digital Rights and Principles

    A Health-Oriented Approach to the Declaration on European Digital Rights and Principles

    Hannah van Kolfschooten and Sofia Palmieri Europe is in the midst of a digital revolution transforming many aspects of daily life. In the healthcare sector, digitalisation may change today’s values and rights. Health tech developments range from relatively simple digital solutions—such as online appointment systems and digital health records—to artificial intelligence (AI) applications—such as AI-powered… Read more