Professor of Medical and Genome Science, University of Washington
American Cancer Society Professor of Medical and Genome Science at the University of Washington in Seattle; former Professor of Genetics at UC Berkeley who located the BRCA-1 gene, linked to breast and ovarian cancer
Human Genetics: Medicine, Money and Law Billions of dollars have been raised for medical research because human genes can be patented so, when breakthroughs occur, investors make money. But early this week New York Federal Judge Robert W. Sweet rocked the bio-tech industry when he ruled that human genes cannot be patented because they are products of nature, not creative invention. The decision is both applauded for liberating the promising new field of personalized genomic medicine and criticized for limiting financial incentives. We hear a variety of answers to some very challenging questions.
Who's to blame for the opioid crisis? Some of the lawyers who took on Big Tobacco are now going after Big Pharma. It’s all about the deadly epidemic of opioid use. Are the drug companies to blame? What about the users? Later, on today’s Talking Point: making sense of Britain’s upset election.
Replacing Obamacare: Now you see it… now you don’t As the Senate deliberates replacing Obmacare, health coverage for millions of people is at stake. There've been no public hearings, and a draft measure won't be made public. Is the House version so unpopular that that Senate is hiding a version that looks much the same?
Trump's 'America First' goes missing abroad In the Middle East, President Trump is changing some policies of the Obama Administration—and reversing his own campaign attacks on Islam as a religion that "hates us." We hear about his visit to Saudi Arabia and what's at stake for the rest of his foreign excursion.
Venezuela spirals into economic and political chaos Venezuela, a country whose potential for prosperity is unmatched, finds itself on the verge of civil war. What sustains the repressive government? With time running out, guest host León Krauze looks at what the international community can do to pull the country from the edge of collapse.