Best Dr. Mark Abdelmalek Podcasts (2025)

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On Shared Reality, Epstein & Epistemic Collapse: A Conversation w Eliot Higgins, Emily Jashinsky & Astead Herndon 1:25:17

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9h ago1:25:17

1:25:17

Today, we’re talking about a different kind of health: the health of our media and information diet. What information we consume, how we consume it, and whether today’s social media ecosystem has become so toxic that it threatens not only our well-being, but the health of our democracy itself. It’s no secret that trust in mass media has plunged to …

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CHD Part 3 of 3: Reflections from the WSITY Team + Conversations w MAHA Parents About Being At CHD 1:14:00

3h ago1:14:00

1:14:00

In the final installment of our series from the Children’s Health Defense conference in Austin, we sit down for candid, face-to-face conversations with attendees. They share their life stories, talk about their thoughts on vaccines, on why RFK Jr. resonates with them, and why they came to Austin. We also reflect on our own experience: Why did we go…

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Children's Health Defense Series Part 2 of 3: A Lively Conversation w Major MAHA Figure Del Bigtree 1:03:34

4h ago1:03:34

1:03:34

In part two of our three-part series from the Children’s Health Defense conference in Austin, we sit down with one of the most influential figures in the MAHA movement: Del Bigtree. A longtime ally of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Bigtree is a singular presence—an expert communicator, storyteller, and filmmaker with a reach of tens of millions. To fans an…

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Live from Children's Health Defense Part 1 of 3: A Conversation w Dr. Bret Weinstein, Dr. Pierre Kory and Dr. Craig Spencer 1:15:47

2d ago1:15:47

1:15:47

We’re on the road this week, coming to you from Austin, Texas, at the Children’s Health Defense 2025 conference. Yes, that Children’s Health Defense: the influential organization founded and once led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., now the country’s top health official. Critics say CHD is one of the most outspoken anti-vaccine groups in America and a maj…

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School Vaccine Requirements: Are We Even Talking About This The Right Way? A Conversation w Sociologist Jennifer Reich 1:06:53

7h ago1:06:53

1:06:53

School vaccine requirements have long been the backbone of America’s public health, keeping vaccination rates high for decades. Every state mandates that children be up to date on routine vaccinations to attend public school, and every state allows medical exemptions—most also allow religious or philosophical ones. But just weeks ago, Florida—and n…

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Election Day Special: Public Health Needs to Get Off the Mat & Join the Political Fight. A Conversation w Dr. Craig Spencer 51:00

4d ago51:00

51:00

It’s Election Day in parts of the country, so we thought it was time to talk politics. Dr. Craig Spencer, from Brown University’s School of Public Health, penned a Substack last week that stopped us cold. In it, he makes a bold case that public health needs to get more political—not partisan, but political in the sense of organizing, mobilizing, an…

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A Yale Researcher & A MAHA Organizer Team Up for East Palestine, Ohio: A Conversation w Nicole Deziel, Elizabeth Frost & Stuart Day 1:20:10

7d ago1:20:10

1:20:10

East Palestine, Ohio, became a national symbol of fear and mistrust after a train carrying toxic chemicals derailed, resulting in a massive black plume filling the sky. Two years later, how are residents of this small community faring? Is their soil, air, and water truly safe? In this episode, we meet two women who chose collaboration over conflict…

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It's Not Me, It's My Algorithm: A Conversation w Claire Wardle About Breaking Through Our Echo Chambers 1:00:18

14d ago1:00:18

1:00:18

They’re the invisible forces steering what we see every day and shaping what we trust. Algorithms, now supercharged by AI, don’t just feed us information. They feed us emotion — suspicion, outrage, validation — and, maybe most dangerously, only the content they think we want to see. Today, we’re talking with an expert about how we got here and wher…

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Special Episode: A Conversation with MAHA Moms & Science Communicators About Autism 1:32:02

27d ago1:32:02

1:32:02

On this special episode—the latest in our series of conversations that bring together people who rarely talk to each other—we hear from different perspectives on autism in a no-holds-barred discussion about this pivotal moment. Joining us are two MAHA moms raising children with autism, Science editor-in-chief Holden Thorp—who was diagnosed with aut…

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How Big Is The Support For MAHA Really? The Numbers Are In! We Talk w Pollster Erica Seifert & MAHA Supporter Aaron Everitt 1:13:01

1M ago1:13:01

1:13:01

It’s been just over a year since Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stood before a raucous Arizona crowd and asked, “Don’t you want a president who’s going to make America healthy again?”-- and with that, the MAHA era began. Now, for the first time, we have data showing how big this movement really is--and how much of America agrees with it. A brand-new nationa…

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Public Health Is Outgunned: A Conversation w Science Communicators Katelyn Jetelina and Jessica Steier 1:15:17

28d ago1:15:17

1:15:17

Today, we’re exploring the new world of health and science communication now that the old playbook is dead. The days of publishing a study and expecting to reach the public with it through legacy media or pointing people to health institutions and medical associations for guidance are over. Millions no longer trust the science, the guidance, or the…

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On Medical Freedom, DEI, RFK Jr. & Free Speech: A Conversation w Author Coleman Hughes 58:05

1M ago58:05

58:05

Coleman Hughes is a thinker, writer, podcaster, and author. You may know him from his Conversations with Coleman podcast with The Free Press, from appearances on CNN, Joe Rogan, and The View, or from his recent book, in which he argues that America should strive toward colorblindness, treating people and designing public policy without regard to ra…

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Special: A Talk w Gen Z: Voices From MAHA, Public Health, Conservative, Liberal, Independent - On A Path Forward For Health In America 1:34:46

1M ago1:34:46

1:34:46

In our latest big conversation bringing together individuals who don’t always see eye to eye, we sit down with Gen Zers who care deeply about the nation’s health. Some are launching careers in public health, others are inspired by the MAHA movement. Together, we talk politics, race, philosophy, and shared values. What do they make of the profound c…

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The President's Announcement On Tylenol & Autism: Discussing It w A Pregnant Mother & A Pediatrician 1:10:35

1M ago1:10:35

1:10:35

On today's episode, a remarkable moment in the Make America Healthy Again era. From the White House, the president urged pregnant women not to take Tylenol, saying it was linked to autism, before launching into a discourse on his personal fears and advice on autism rates, vaccine safety, and when parents should vaccinate their children. For many MA…

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The Hepatitis B Birth Dose Vaccine: Do We Need It? An Honest Conversation w Dr. Paul Offit & Dr. Michael Mina 1:21:41

2M ago1:21:41

1:21:41

It’s the very first shot a newborn gets—just hours after birth. Today, Secretary Kennedy’s new Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) Committee is reviewing whether it should remain so. We’re talking about the Hepatitis B “birth dose,” the starting point of America’s childhood vaccine schedule since 1991. But for some parents today, it…

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Special Ep: A Lively Discussion w Farmers, Journalists, & Advocates -- MAHA & Others -- About Farming Our Country's Food 1:24:21

2M ago1:24:21

1:24:21

On today's episode, we are heading to the farm, which is where one of America's biggest debates is taking place over food, health, and who and what we trust. Modern agriculture feeds the nation and the world, but its tools raise tough questions about long-term impacts on our health, not to mention our land. You'll hear from farmers, journalists and…

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Special Ep: Following the Murder of Charlie Kirk, Is Engaging In Civil Disagreement Worth it? We Chat w Aaron, Elizabeth & Craig 1:02:35

2M ago1:02:35

1:02:35

It's been 24 hours since we learned about the shooting and murder of famed conservative activist and leader Charlie Kirk. We wanted to bring together some friends of the show, people we engage with frequently on the pod, to discuss what happened to Charlie, and to get into how we as a society can disagree better, whether getting to yes or even tryi…

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Kennedy's Health Plan for America + Do Black Americans Feel Seen By MAHA? A Conversation w Dr. Michael Forde 1:10:21

2M ago1:10:21

1:10:21

**We recorded this episode on Wednesday early morning. ** The big MAHA report is out, a roadmap for how Kennedy and the Trump administration plan to tackle the chronic disease crisis impacting America's children. It’s a bold attempt to turn the federal government toward confronting the dire state of our health. In this episode, we break down what’s…

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A Conversation With The Three CDC Leaders Who Resigned In Protest & MAHA Supporters 1:59:21

2M ago1:59:21

1:59:21

Americans today are engaging in a great Rorschach Test over public health–and its results may determine our future. Are radical changes at the CDC and beyond moving us in the right direction for a healthier nation, or dangerously backwards? Are we undoing the very system that has protected us for decades (from infectious disease)? Or upending a sys…

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How Corporations Fuel Our Chronic Disease Crisis: A Conversation w Public Health Researcher Anna Gilmore 39:50

3M ago39:50

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Our guest today, researcher Anna Gilmore, recently went viral with a provocative revelation: just four products cause at least a third of all deaths worldwide. But behind the attention-grabbing headline is her deeper mission--exposing a complex, corporate-driven system that fuels poor diets, worsening health, and our chronic disease crisis. To avoi…

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A Conversation w Fox News Medical Correspondent Dr. Marc Siegel On mRNA, RFK Jr, & On Reaching People 50:58

3M ago50:58

50:58

His voice reaches millions of Americans who many in mainstream science and public health just don’t reach these days. He is Dr. Marc Siegel, the senior medical analyst for FOX News who recently argued that President Trump should be given the Nobel Peace Prize for leading Operation Warp Speed – the rapid development of mRNA vaccines that was given t…

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Bonus Episode! A Conversation w Former FDA Chief David Kessler. Did He Just Give RFK Jr a Tool to Fight the Food Industry? 42:30

3M ago42:30

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Our guest today is David Kessler, the former FDA commissioner who once devised a strategy to take on Big Tobacco. Now, he’s back with a bold game plan for MAHA and President Trump to challenge the makers of ultra-processed foods. While making food healthier is central to MAHA’s mission, critics say its early wins, like persuading companies to remov…

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MAHA-Public Health Conversation #6: On Food, On Nutrition, On Government, & On the Shooting at the CDC 1:58:04

3M ago1:58:04

1:58:04

In this special episode of Why Should I Trust You?, we're taking on the all-important topic of food with members of the Make America Healthy Again movement, along with a panel of seasoned experts in food and nutrition science, including Kevin Hall, the former NIH nutrition scientist. We set out to talk about nutrition, the food industry, and politi…

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Sunday Special: A Conversation w Neil deGrasse Tyson & Scott Hamilton Kennedy On Science, Tribalism and Truth 53:06

3M ago53:06

53:06

Welcome to a special episode of Why Should I Trust You? We’re joined by Neil deGrasse Tyson and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Scott Hamilton Kennedy. There may be no more recognizable figure in science today than Tyson: astronomer, author, public thinker, and the guy who’s done more than just about anyone to make science accessible. Today, our focus is…

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A CDC Director-palooza: A Candid Conversation w Two Former CDC Chiefs Drs. Tom Frieden & Mandy Cohen 1:13:26

3M ago1:13:26

1:13:26

Is the CDC finally being fixed—or intentionally dismantled? Wherever you fall on that divide—long-overdue reform or something more alarming—seismic changes are underway at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is implementing dramatic cuts and a reorganization that he says will help focus the CDC on its…

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Special: Leading MAHA Activist Zen Honeycutt, On Her Anger At the EPA + On Cuts to Science. Is This What MAHA Wants? 37:56

3M ago37:56

37:56

We are joined by Zen Honeycutt, the founder of Moms Across America and a leading voice in the MAHA movement. She’s an outspoken force of nature on a range of issues that she sees as negatively impacting the health of children. There are many directions our conversation could take (and many things to debate), but we focused on a question we hear fre…

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What's A Conspiracy Theory Anyway? We Talk UFOs, Gov't Secrets & Journalism w Two WSJ Reporters 1:08:39

3M ago1:08:39

1:08:39

With the Jeffrey Epstein saga dominating the conversation for weeks now, it feels like we’re roasting in a summer of conspiracy theories. And given how conspiracy and cover-up play a recurring role in the story we’re exploring about the breakdown of trust in public health and medicine, this week felt as good as any to take on the topic. So, what’s …

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Kevin Hall Is Still Ultra Processing: On Leaving NIH, On MAHA, On Food in America 1:18:51

4M ago1:18:51

1:18:51

Kevin Hall is regarded as one of the world’s leading experts on the impact of food on our health. A former NIH scientist, he led some of the most eye-opening studies on the connections between ultra-processed foods and overeating, obesity, and chronic disease (Spoiler alert: It's not pretty.). So when Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the Make America Heal…

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A Revealing Conversation btwn MAHA, Doctors & Journalists On Trust In Media, In RFK Jr & In Experts 2:01:34

4M ago2:01:34

2:01:34

What happens when you bring a group of MAHA advocates together with journalists and public health communicators and ask: When it comes to the media, who do you trust for your information and why? What about doctors? What about Sec. Kennedy? This week, we found out. The result is an intense, surprising, sometimes funny, often confounding conversatio…

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A Conversation w Dr. Francis Collins On Reforming NIH, Cuts to Research, MAHA, & On Trust 46:43

4M ago46:43

46:43

On today’s episode, we’re joined by Dr. Francis Collins, the former head of the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Collins has spent his career pushing the frontiers of science — from discovering genes linked to deadly diseases to leading the historic Human Genome Project. And during COVID, he helped steer the government’s public health response, i…

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Lessons From the 1980s AIDS Crisis and Applying It To Today: A Conversation w Dr. Reed Tuckson 36:59

5M ago36:59

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When COVID hit, public health leaders often said, “There was no playbook.” But was that really true? Decades earlier, during the AIDS crisis, America’s public health system went through a trial by fire—learning hard lessons about how to communicate amid uncertainty, adapt to evolving science, and work with communities instead of against them. Flash…

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Fired ACIP Members Speak To Us On the Future of Vaccines + Dr. Michael Mina On A 'Code Red' Moment 1:23:31

4M ago1:23:31

1:23:31

Why is a little-known CDC advisory committee meeting today making big headlines? Because Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. just fired every single member—replacing them with his own hand-picked team. The committee in question is ACIP, a group of independent experts that guides how vaccines are used by hundreds of millions of Americans. Kennedy called…

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The Medicaid Axe is About To Fall. We Asked a Group of MAHA, MAGA & Independent Parents to Weigh In 1:37:26

5M ago1:37:26

1:37:26

In today’s episode, what do a group of MAHA, MAGA, and independent moms and dads of children with disabilities think about the changes Republicans in Congress are hashing out right now for Medicaid, as they push to pass President Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill”? If a healthier America is your top priority, this is a red-alert moment. A nonpartisa…

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Why Does the Phrase “mRNA” Rip Americans Apart? We Chat w Nobel-Prize Winning Scientist Drew Weissman 1:05:12

5M ago1:05:12

1:05:12

It’s the four letters that changed our lives: M-R-N-A. Hailed as a modern medical miracle that delivered the life-saving COVID vaccine in record time, mRNA now fuels one of the most polarizing debates in public health. Critics see it as a dangerous experiment that has turned deadly, a symbol of Big Pharma overreach, and a culture of corporate captu…

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Special: MAHA Georgia & Public Health In a Spirited Discussion On the Legacy of the Covid Vaccine 1:20:46

5M ago1:20:46

1:20:46

On today's special episode, a raw and unflinching conversation between MAHA advocates from Georgia and a group of veterans from public health. The discussion dives straight into one of the biggest drivers of mistrust in public health today: the COVID vaccine. Is it a life-saving marvel of modern science or a dangerous technology imposed on the publ…

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Can Nuance On Raw Milk Boost Vaccine Uptake? A Conversation On Data & Messaging w Emily Oster 50:53

5M ago50:53

50:53

We’ve heard it—and you’ve probably heard it too: critics of public health say the way health advice is delivered is a big part of why trust is plummeting. The critique goes like this: experts and institutions often take complicated, nuanced data and present it as all-knowing, black-and-white rules—“Vaccines are safe,” “Raw milk is bad,” “Fluoride i…

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Searching for the Causes of Autism: A Conversation with Two Moms, Alison Singer and Nancy Fuller 1:20:54

5M ago1:20:54

1:20:54

Few topics crystallize our current breakdown in trust more than autism. And with Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s renewed push to find its cause, autism isn’t just back in the national spotlight—it’s fueling a debate that’s dividing communities. Supporters see Kennedy as a force disrupting the status quo, channeling money and fresh energy into the search fo…

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On Trust in Biden, Media, Politicians & On Aging: A Conversation with CNN's Jake Tapper 58:35

6M ago58:35

58:35

Today, we’re joined by CNN's Jake Tapper, who along with Axios' Alex Thompson, are authors of the new book Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again. Their reporting is sending shockwaves throughout Washington and beyond--its release landing the same week as the news of the former president’s aggr…

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Special: MAHA Meets w Public Health, the 2nd Conversation: On RFK Jr., Vaccines, Corporate Influence, & More 1:34:02

6M ago1:34:02

1:34:02

In today’s episode — the second installment of our conversation between MAHA and Public Health — we bring together veteran public health leaders and grassroots activists from Ohio’s Make America Healthy Again chapter, two sides that allegedly don't agree on much. Our first conversation raised big questions. Some asked: Why even engage? At a time wh…

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Why Americans Are Turning to the Paranormal—and What That Says About Trust, w Author Matt Hongoltz-Hetling 49:11

6M ago49:11

49:11

Do you believe in ghosts? The paranormal? Hold that thought. Believe it or not, it ties directly into the themes of our show. Trust in our institutions is crumbling—from government and media to higher education, and yes, even medicine, science, and public health. Today’s guest, Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of the new book The Ghost Lab, Matt …

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Special Ep: We Talk COVID.Gov, Lab Leaks & Raccoon Dogs w Paul Offit, Maciek Boni & David Wallace Wells 1:21:48

6M ago1:21:48

1:21:48

In this special episode, we dig into the origins of the pandemic. Has America decided it began with a lab leak? Is the debate over? The Trump administration says yes, launching a new government website asserting that Covid originated in a lab, not from animal-to-human transmission at the now-infamous Wuhan market. In recent days, Trump signed an ex…

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Inside A Rare Conversation Between MAHA Grassroots and Public Health Leaders 1:45:50

6M ago1:45:50

1:45:50

In today’s episode: a conversation between two sides that don’t typically speak with each other—mainstream public health leaders and voices from the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement. These groups often talk about each other, but rarely to each other. Five MAHA members from their state chapter in Ohio. Five public health leaders. We had me…

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Can Dems Be the Party of Health in an Age of RFK Jr.’s MAHA? A Conversation w Sen. Maggie Hassan 45:44

6M ago45:44

45:44

During RFK Jr.'s confirmation hearing back in January, many voices competed to be heard. But one cut through the noise: Senator Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire — a Democrat, a policymaker, and the mother of a son with Cerebral Palsy. Her emotional testimony about love, a mother's guilt, and the daily realities of disability struck a national chord. …

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How to Reach People in Today's New Media Amid a Crisis of Mistrust. A Conversation with Emily Jashinsky 53:43

7M ago53:43

53:43

We’re joined by Emily Jashinsky, co-host of Counterpoints with Ryan Grim. Formerly with The Federalist and The Hill, Emily now serves as DC correspondent for UnHerd and hosts Undercurrents TV. She’s someone well-versed in this shifting media landscape. Together, we explore the rise of the so-called “New Media”—a world where legacy outlets are givin…

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A Writer's Journey w a Rare Disease Led Her to Champion Obamacare & Democrats. Why She Is Now a MAGA Supporter. 47:38

7M ago47:38

47:38

In today’s episode, we speak with Evan Barker, a writer, podcaster, and former Democratic staffer and fundraiser who, in 2024, voted for Donald Trump. Raised in a working-class community by her mother, Barker's family lived paycheck to paycheck. Then she was diagnosed with a rare, potentially fatal chronic illness. Raised in a blue-collar Missouri …

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Special Ep: A Conversation with Dr. Peter Marks on Vaccine Safety, Trust, and the True Scope of the Measles Outbreak 1:10:50

7M ago1:10:50

1:10:50

Nation's Top Vaccine Regulator Just Ousted, Dr. Peter Marks: "Measles is NOT leveling off". This is in direct contrast to Secretary Kennedy's statement just yesterday that the nation's measles outbreak is under control. Plus why he felt he could not stay at the FDA anymore, his answers to parents' questions about vaccine safety, what he sees for pu…

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Wendell Potter, A Health Insurance Exec Turned Whistleblower, On Blowing Up Our System 57:19

7M ago57:19

57:19

On today's episode, we tackle a topic that sparks more fear, frustration, and mistrust than perhaps any other: health insurance. From denied claims to endless bureaucratic red tape and the dread of sky-high out-of-pocket costs, it's no wonder so many Americans feel trapped. While more people are covered than ever before, many are still skipping doc…

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What's the End Game? We Talk Massive Remaking of HHS with Gov't Reformer Jennifer Pahlka 52:42

7M ago52:42

52:42

Health and Human Services chief RFK Jr. unleashed much-anticipated cuts this week, bringing the total to 20,000 jobs slashed from our nation’s premier health institution. This follows cuts in money for state public health agencies and funding freezes for research centers tackling everything from cancer to veterans' health. Secretary Kennedy says th…

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America’s Funding Cuts Chaos + Are We the Next No-Lockdown Sweden? We Chat with Anders Tegnell 59:54

8M ago59:54

59:54

Our team first takes on the drastic funding cuts shaking the medical, scientific, and public health communities before turning to a provocative question: What if, during the next pandemic, we avoided strict lockdowns, vaccine mandates, and widespread restrictions? What if schools, workplaces, bars, and gyms stayed open, and the government encourage…

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On Measles: Vaccines vs Vitamin A. Plus, What Marion Nestle Says Public Health Is Getting Wrong 1:03:16

8M ago1:03:16

1:03:16

Amid a deadly measles outbreak, a fresh battle has erupted, pitting mainstream public health against MAHA, infectious disease against chronic disease, and Vitamin A against vaccination. It's a fight that hinges on a fundamental question: Is your illness driven more by infectious disease or underlying chronic conditions? One side argues that vaccina…