What if your taxes were funding billions in cruel, ineffective animal experiments with near-zero benefit to human health?

In this eye-opening episode of Puppies, Pandemics, and Public Health, host Dr. Johnny Lieberman talks with Justin Goodman, Senior Vice President of Advocacy and Public Policy at White Coat Waste Project, about the hidden world of government-funded animal testing. With over 20 years in advocacy, Justin exposes how agencies like NIH, FDA, and DOD waste $20 billion annually on experiments that fail to translate to humans—often with 95% failure rates. From beagle vocal cord surgeries to primate sepsis tests and potential COVID origins in U.S.-funded Wuhan labs, Justin details campaigns that have shut down facilities and saved animals.

He emphasizes shifting to human-relevant research, adopting lab survivors, and using tools like FOIA to drive change. Whether you're concerned about ethics, public health, or fiscal waste, this episode uncovers why taxpayer accountability is key—and how you can help end the cycle.

Top 3 Takeaways

1. Government's Role in Animal Testing: Government Is the Biggest Funder of Animal Testing U.S. agencies like NIH and DOD spend $20 billion yearly on experiments—two-thirds of all U.S. animal testing—with failure rates up to 95%, yielding little human benefit.
2. Wasteful and Cruel Practices: Experiments Are Wasteful and Cruel From beagle toxicity tests to primate sepsis models, most fail to translate to humans; campaigns have exposed and shut down labs, highlighting ethical and fiscal issues.
3. Advocacy and Adoption for Change: Advocate for Change and Adoption Use FOIA for transparency, support laws for lab animal adoption, and push for human-relevant research to end waste and improve science.

About the Guest – Justin Goodman, MA

Justin Goodman is the Senior Vice President of Advocacy and Public Policy at non-profit government watchdog White Coat Waste. For more than 20 years, Justin has led high-profile, winning grassroots and lobbying campaigns to expose and end billions in wasteful and cruel taxpayer-funded experiments on dogs, cats, primates and other animals. Justin’s work has been covered by all major media outlets and awarded by the American Association of Political Consultants, LUSH Cosmetics, and others.

Website: https://www.whitecoatwaste.org

About the Show

Puppies, Pandemics, and Public Health explores the intersection of animal welfare, public policy, and human health. Hosted by Dr. Johnny Lieberman, each episode invites changemakers, legal experts, and health advocates to shed light on what really impacts our communities—and what we can do about it.

About the Host

Dr. Johnny Lieberman is a physician, public health advocate, and lifelong animal lover with a passion for connecting the dots between animal welfare, human behavior, and the systems that shape our lives. With a background in both medicine and public health policy, Johnny brings a unique lens to conversations about how our treatment of animals impacts human health, the environment, and social justice.

In Puppies, Pandemics, and Public Health, Johnny brings warmth, curiosity, and a dash of wit to tough conversations that matter. From exposing the realities of factory farming to uncovering the links between zoonotic diseases and our food systems, his goal is to empower listeners to be informed, compassionate, and engaged citizens—while still keeping it real (and sometimes bringing in puppies).

Whether he's discussing legislative loopholes or snuggling his rescue dog between recordings, Dr. Lieberman believes that creating a healthier world starts with how we treat its most vulnerable beings.