America Dissected

Latest Episodes:

Open for Business: Toilet Paper and Disaster Capitalism Apr 03, 2020

Show notes

Abdul dissects how hospitals are struggling under the surge of COVID patients, while writer Naomi Klein joins us to talk about the “shock doctrine” of disaster capitalism. We'll find out what disaster capitalism means, how it's affected past disasters and how human behavior perceives everything from toilet paper to corporate bailouts.

Emergency Room: A dispatch from the Front Lines Mar 31, 2020

Show notes

As doctors, nurses, and hospital staff do battle on the front lines, how is the growing pandemic affecting these people and how are they coping? Abdul will talk with Dr. Aakash Shah, an emergency room doctor in New Jersey.

Life Support: Congress and COVID (with Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal) Mar 27, 2020

Show notes

This week the Senate passed a historic, $2 trillion stimulus bill aimed at easing the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The legislation, which is expected to pass the House of Representatives on Friday, will grant financial assistance to individuals and businesses - especially industries affected by the crisis, airlines and manufacturers, among others. But will it be enough? We’ll talk with Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, who represents Washington’s 7th district, one of the hardest hit communities by COVID19. We’ll hear her perspective on what we can learn from Washington State’s experience.

The Tweetment: Why Science Matters Now Mar 24, 2020

Show notes

Host Abdul El-Sayed dissects the claim of a possible cure for COVID-19, and then we talk to Dr. Alison Galvani, an epidemiologist and infectious diseases modeler at Yale, about how long the current outbreak could last.

Plandemic: How the World is Treating Coronavirus Mar 20, 2020

Show notes

Abdul dissects the news of a vaccine, the concept of “flattening the curve,” and the notion of herd immunity. Ben Rhodes, former Deputy National Security Advisor, joins to dissect the Global Pandemic response and what went wrong.

A Public/Private Health Emergency Mar 17, 2020

Show notes

Abdul dissects President Trump’s State of Emergency Declaration and the true number of cases in America. And we explore how the American public health system’s organized (and what went wrong) with Jon Auerbach, a former state and local health commissioner and CDC official.

It's a Pandemic, Now What? Mar 13, 2020

Show notes

The Coronavirus is now a global pandemic. How did we get here? What went wrong? What do we do about it now? Twice a week, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, a physician and former city health commissioner, will keep you updated on what you need to know about COVID-19, what led us to this crisis in the first place, and what policies can lead us out. New episodes out every Tuesday & Friday, starting Tuesday 3/17. Subscribe now.

Healthcare Dissected pt 1: "Nobody Knew Healthcare Could Be So Complicated" Nov 18, 2019

Show notes

Throughout this series, we’ve considered how the straining relationship between science and government has led to a variety of public health issues, from the rise of superbugs to the epidemic of loneliness. Here, we take our scalpel to the most obvious problem of them all: the American healthcare system itself. Dr. Abdul El-Sayed talks with Lisa Cardillo whose scary brush with the healthcare system helps us deconstruct the business of American healthcare, where all of us are both the product and the consumer.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected .

Healthcare Dissected pt 2: Medicare-for-who? Nov 18, 2019

Show notes

Do you ever go to a bakery and become utterly paralyzed by all the possibilities in the display case? A chocolate chip muffin sounds good, but so does a croissant. Are they gluten free? Made fresh daily? Unraveling the 2020 candidates’ healthcare plans can sort of feel the same way, just a whole lot more daunting. In this final episode of America Dissected (we’re crying too), Dr. Abdul El-Sayed walks us through each of the major healthcare plans, including Medicare-For-All, the public option, and Medicare-for-America to help us assess how each of these plans would have helped Lisa (or not). Finally, Dr. El-Sayed speaks with Friend of the Pod Ady Barkan, an inspiring activist who wants every American to have the right to lead a full, healthy life.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected .

Cradle And All Nov 11, 2019

Show notes

Today, many of us can take it for granted that our grandparents will live through our childhood— and that our children might get to meet them. Not that long ago, though, that wasn't so common. Not just because our grandparents didn't used to live that long, but because so many babies died before their first birthday. In most American communities, infant mortality is a thing of the past. But not in all of them. Dr. Abdul El-Sayed takes us to Detroit to dissect American life expectancy— to understand why it's declining and why it may never have been as high as it should have been in the first place.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/americadissected .