America Dissected

From celebrities who hate vaccines to politicians who hate Obamacare - the mistrust fake news, sensationalism, and social media firestorms that we see every day in politics and the media are distracting us from what really matters for our health. Every week on America Dissected, doctors Abdul El-Sayed and Katelyn Jetelina go beyond the headlines to dissect America's major health problems and the t...

Abdul reflects on the pandemic and what it’s taught us about ourselves and our societies. Then Abdul shares his own vaccine experience and talks to America Dissected listeners—including Crooked’s own Akilah Hughes—about theirs. For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected .

Abdul salutes the frontline healthcare providers. Then he talks to Jenny Gold, Senior Correspondent at Kaiser Health News, and Dr. Paloma Marin-Nevarez, Emergency Medicine Resident at UCSF Fresno about the challenges of being a new doctor in a pandemic. You can find a transcript of this episode at crooked.com/americadissected .

Abdul talks reflects on the little joys the pandemic robbed from us--and the big impact they have on the businesses that provide them. Then he talks to Corby Kummer, food critic and Executive Director of the Aspen Institute Food & Society Program and Chef Amanda Cohen, Chef & Owner of Dirt Candy in New York City about their new Safety First restaurant COVID-19 safety protocols. You can fin...

Abdul breaks down why we were so ill-prepared for COVID-19. Then he talks to John Auerbach, former Associate Director of the CDC and President and CEO of the Trust for America’s Health about their new report on the state of public health emergency preparedness—and what we need to do to fix it. You can find a full transcript of this episode at crooked.com/americadissected .

Abdul reflects on how our healthcare system got here. Then he talks to Rep. Pramila Jayapal about the new Medicare for All bill in the House, and what it tells us about the lessons we have to learn from this pandemic. You can find a transcript of this episode at crooked.com/americadissected .

Abdul reflects on the increase in violence against the Asian-American community. He then talks to Dr. Julie Morita, Former Chicago City Health Commissioner, Member of President Biden’s COVID-19 Transition Task Force, and Executive Vice President at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation about the lessons we’ve learned and those we yet need to. For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com...

Abdul reflects on a year of COVID-19 and discusses what’s in the COVID-19 relief package. He then talks to Dr. Joia Mukherjee, Chief Medical Officer at Partners in Health, a global health non-profit organization operating in the US and abroad, about what it will take for America to lead globally on COVID-19.  You can find a full transcript of this episode at crooked.com/americadissected .

Abdul reflects on how important public opinion—and its shapers—have been to the pandemic. He then talks to Chris Jackson, a pollster and Vice President at Ipsos, about their weekly pandemic public opinion poll and what it tells us about where we are and where we’re going. For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected .

Abdul reflects on the economic consequences of COVID-19. Abdul talks to Jane Oates, President of WorkingNation and former Labor Department Official under President Obama, about the unequal burden of lost livelihoods among women. For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected .

Abdul sets expectations on how our current pandemic will end. He then poses the question to John Barry, author of the definitive book about the last great pandemic, The Great Influenza, to see what we can learn from history. For a transcript of this episode, please visit: crooked.com/americadissected

Abdul talks about how our failure to invest in public health is hurting our vaccine effort. He talks to Dr. Angie Rasmussen, America Dissected’s resident virologist to break down the new variants and what they tell us about where we go from here. For a transcript of this episode, please visit: crooked.com/americadissected

Abdul reflects on the power and responsibility of American leadership--and what it means for how the US must lead on COVID-19. He talks to Brian Beutler, Editor-in-Chief at Crooked Media and host of season 2 of the podcast Rubicon, focused on President Biden’s first 100 days.  For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected

Abdul explains the race between virus and vaccine. He reflects on how history’s racism is shaping the COVID-19 response today. He talks to Dr. Mary Bassett, Director of the FXB Center for Health & Human Rights at Harvard and former Health Commissioner for New York City.

Abdul dissects President Biden’s COVID19 executive orders and reflects on what COVID-19’s showed us about our healthcare system. He talks to Dr. Micah Johnson, resident physician at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Abdul’s co-author on the new book “Medicare for All: A Citizen’s Guide.”

Abdul reflects on the notion of American exceptionalism and COVID-19. He interviews Dr. Paul Farmer, renowned medical humanitarian, medical anthropologist, and author of the new book “Fevers, Feuds, and Diamonds: Ebola and the Ravages of History” about what the Ebola epidemic can teach us about COVID-19 today.

Abdul reflects on how the role of disinformation has shaped both the pandemic and the attempted coup at the Capitol. He talks to Dr. Seema Yasmin, a health journalist, former Epidemic Intelligence Officer, and author of a new book on how health misinformation spreads.

Abdul reflects on the lagging vaccine deployment and what it tells us about public health. He talks to Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett, an immunologist and lead vaccine researcher at the National Institutes of Health Vaccine Research Center, about the vaccine research process and why diversity in science matters so much.

Abdul and Sarah, a psychiatrist, answer your questions about mental health during a challenging time.

Abdul talks about the critical role of trust for collective action and public health. He talks to reporter Helen Branswell about the opportunities and challenges facing the forthcoming Presidential transition.

Abdul reflects on the deployment of a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine. He talks to virologist Dr. Angela Rasmussen about the biology of the vaccine and reporter Matt Herper about the logistics and outreach challenges facing vaccine deployment.

Abdul reflects on the role that states in this pandemic have had to play in the absence of federal leadership and what the implications might be for deploying COVID-19 vaccines. He then speaks with Michael Fraser, Executive Director of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials about how state health departments are shouldering the load.  You can find Michael on Twitter at @mfraserd...

Abdul and Dr. Syra Madad, who leads the special pathogens unit at New York City Health & Hospitals, answer your questions about COVID-19.

Abdul reflects on Thanksgiving and the future of this surge in the pandemic. Then he interviews Fiona Lowenstein, co-founder of the Body Politic’s COVID-19 support group about her experience with “Long COVID” and COVID “long-haulers”.

Abdul reflects on the COVID-19 surge we’re experiencing. Then he interviews Kristin Urquiza, co-founder of Marked by COVID whose father passed of COVID-19, and Dr. Kathy Shear, a psychiatrist and expert on grief