The lasting damage of vaccine misinformation and the disgraced doctor fueling it
Description
The Trump administration’s recent claim that acetaminophen [Tylenol] use during pregnancy may increase the risk of autism is yet another chapter in its campaign of misinformation and assault on science.
At the center of modern anti-vaccine mythology is Andrew Wakefield, the disgraced former physician who lost his medical license after his infamous 1998 Lancet study fraudulently linked the MMR – measles, mumps and rubella vaccine to autism.
It was investigative journalist Brian Deer - author of, “The Doctor Who Fooled the World” - who exposed Wakefield’s deception and dismantled the fraudulent study. Ken and Brian discuss how the Trump administration led by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues to spread Wakefield’s falsehoods, exploit people’s fears and undermine public health.
For a deeper dive into today’s discussion:
Brian Deer's Website
The BMJ "How the vaccine crisis was meant to make money"
Ken Cook Is Having Another Episode every other week.
United States
