Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Associate Director of the Graduate Program in Science Writing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and author of The Panic Virus: The True Story Behind the Vaccine-Autism Controversy
PROFILE
Seth Mnookin
Guest
FROM Seth Mnookin
To the Point
Will California's Vaccine Law Influence Other States? All 50 states require immunization of children starting school, but almost two-dozen allow waivers based on personal beliefs and religion. Now the biggest state in the union has enacted an uncompromising ban on all such exemptions. California Governor Jerry Brown has signed into law a sweeping ban on exemptions to mandatory childhood vaccination , joining Mississippi and West Virginia as the only states to ban not just personal waivers -- but waivers based on religion as well. Is it a test case for the rest of the nation? Seth Mnookin is author of The Panic Virus: The True Story behind the Vaccine-Autism Controversy . Special thanks to Paul von Zielbauer for production assistance.
To the Point
Preventable Diseases Are Making a Comeback The development of vaccines has changed modern history by preventing diseases that once killed millions of people. But there have recently been outbreaks of childhood maladies thought to have been eliminated. Most Americans don't remember measles, because the disease was declared eradicated in the year 2000. But, from New York to California, recent outbreaks are reminders of the potentially deadly disease, due to a drop in the vaccination of vulnerable children. Elsewhere in the world, polio's making a comeback, where violence and religious beliefs have discouraged vaccination or made it impossible. In America, some parents are making a choice. Is there a lack of trust in the public health system? Are the media spreading misinformation? How's a parent to know?
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Is the threat from Russia missing from the Russia meddling probe? There's much being made about the Trump administration's possible ties with Russia. But the bottom line is Russia's effort to influence American democracy. Do the President and his aides care enough to take action before voters go back to the polls?
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Trump's new look at civil rights and global warming President Trump is reportedly ready to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. We look at the possible consequences. On the second half of the program, we hear about cuts in Obama-Era civil rights programs called for by the Trump Administration's first budget plan.
To the Point
Trump plays scolder-in-chief with NATO allies At the opening of NATO’s dramatic new headquarters in Brussels today, President Trump acknowledged that Article 5 — promising that “an attack on one nation is an attack on all” -- has only been invoked one time: in the aftermath of September 11. But the President failed to provide what 27 other Alliance members have been waiting for: a re-commitment by America’s new leader to Article 5. Instead, they got a scolding.
To the Point
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?