With rising awareness of the tragic scope of the environmental injury incurred by so many citizens, young and old, will come a rising demand for justice on behalf of those injured parties. In a just society, restitution for these injuries must be provided: the injured individuals must be acknowledged and their suffering recognized; compensation must be provided to injured parties and their families; and ultimately, accountability for damage and failure must be identified so that important lessons can be learned and passed forward. One such lesson is that a new social contract is required that respects and honors past and potential victims of medical error, arrogance, and avarice. Therefore, we call for a new contract with parents and consumers, one anchored not on a grand gamble and utilitarian calculus, but rather from behind a veil of ignorance, where deference is given to all victims of medical injury and respect accorded equally to all forms of suffering, those that include the absence of intervention as well as its benefits.

Guiding Principles

Awareness

Awareness of the new man-made epidemics is the first requirement for ending them.

Precaution

When complexity clouds our understanding of health crises, our moral imperative is to first do no harm.

Safety

The best measure of a safe environment is the total health and happiness of an individual human being.

Choice

The individual's right to choose or refuse medical interventions affecting them or their children must be defended.

Freedom

Full access to the healing professions and to truthful information is essential to liberty.

Sovereignty

True empowerment requires that the individual is accorded and assumes responsibility for their own health, happiness and nutrition.

Justice

When injuries occur as a consequence of institutional failure, the victims deserve justice.

Integrity

The cause of justice is best served when our governing institutions are free from commercial interests.

Compassion

A compassionate society has a duty to provide injured and otherwise disabled citizens with an opportunity for happiness and to treat them with dignity.