This Halloween-themed episode of Medicine: The Truth finds hosts Dr. Robert Pearl and Jeremy Corr confronting the real horrors haunting American medicine today.

When Corr asks what scares him most, Dr. Pearl doesn’t hesitate: it’s the chaos, confusion and politicization that have replaced science and reason. From vaccine policy to drug and insurance pricing to Medicaid cuts, Pearl explains how bad decisions by government and industry leaders are endangering lives.

The conversation begins with Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s newly appointed vaccine advisory committee, whose erratic decisions could jeopardize national immunization efforts and patient trust. It moves quickly to Donald Trump’s claim that Tylenol use during pregnancy causes autism. Pearl explains why the claim is biologically implausible, breaks down the real risks of acetaminophen overdose, and warns of the harm caused when political figures replace data with personal belief.

The hosts then turn to Mississippi’s infant mortality crisis, where a lack of OB-GYNs and the state’s refusal to expand Medicaid have pushed death rates to record highs. It’s a chilling illustration, Pearl says, of what happens when ideology trumps compassion.

From there, the episode moves through a series of pressing stories:

As the episode continues, Dr. Pearl highlights grim data on America’s declining health outcomes compared to other wealthy nations, the spread of Chagas disease across U.S. states, and the crushing cost of employer-based insurance. Together, these stories reveal a nation spending more, living shorter and losing faith in its medical institutions. A scary story, indeed.

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Dr. Robert Pearl is the author of the new book “ChatGPT, MD: How AI-Empowered Patients & Doctors Can Take Back Control of American Medicine” about the impact of AI on the future of medicine. All profits from the book go to Doctors Without Borders.

Fixing Healthcare is a co-production of Dr. Robert Pearl and Jeremy Corr. Subscribe to the show via Apple, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you find podcasts. Join the conversation or suggest a guest by following the show on Twitter and LinkedIn

The post MTT #99: The frightening state of U.S. medicine as politics replace science appeared first on Fixing Healthcare.