Transparency as a double-edged sword : public health ethics perspective

Transparency has gained much attention in both public health and medical contexts. Alberto Giubilini, Rachel Gur-Arie and Euzebiusz Jamrozik make a valuable contribution to addressing the ethical question on the value and role of transparency by claiming that transparency is a necessary condition for the moral trustworthiness of experts. This comment is conceived as a follow-up on this issue. Usually, ethical discussions on transparency concern its consequentialist aspects such as the influence of disclosure on stakeholders’ trust. However, as the author will claim, there is something morally significant and non-consequentialist at stake. The aim of the comment is to highlight two important aspects concerning transparency. Firstly, its role in public health ethics, and, secondly, the moral basis for this role. Regarding the former, the author will claim that transparency influences moral legitimacy of coercive public health policies. Regarding the latter, the author will claim that by being transparent, policymakers respect stakeholders as moral agents capable of reason.