Public Health On Call

About this episode:  
This summer, Merck & Co. settled more than 200 lawsuits alleging that the company's HPV vaccine, Gardasil, caused cases of autoimmune conditions and fertility issues in young women. But that $50 million settlement is not an admission of fault on the part of the company or the vaccine. In this episode: Vaccine law expert Dorit Reiss details the lawsuits, including why evidence isn't stacking up for plaintiffs and how headlines about the dollar amount can misconstrue the facts of the case.  
Guest: 
Dorit Reiss, PhD, is an expert on vaccine policy and a professor of law at UC San Francisco.
Host: 
Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. 
Show links and related content: 
Merck to Settle Bulk of Gardasil Suits for About $50 Million—Bloomberg

Kennedy played key role in Gardasil vaccine case against Merck—Reuters

What VAERS Is (And Isn't)—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
The HPV Vaccine, 20 Years Later—Public Health On Call (August 2026)

Vaccines 101: The Vaccine Injury Compensation Program—Public Health On Call (February 2025)
Transcript information:
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Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.

About this episode:  
In the latest move to alter the childhood vaccine schedule, the president has signed an executive order seeking to scale back and restructure routine immunizations. In this episode: what's in the executive order, what it means, and what comes next.
Guest: 
Dr. Josh Sharfstein is distinguished professor of the practice in Health Policy and Management, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. He served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 2005 to 2009. 
Host: 
Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. 
Show links and related content: 
Delivering Gold Standard Childhood Vaccine Recommendations for Americans—The White House

HHS Changes Its Pediatric Vaccine Recommendations: What's Different, What Remains, and What It Means for American Health—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

What Exactly is in a Vaccine?—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

A Judge Rules on Vaccines—Public Health On Call (April 2026)

The Evidence on Vaccines and Autism—Public Health On Call (March 2025)

Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
Contact us:
Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
Follow us:
@‌PublicHealthPod on Bluesky

@‌PublicHealthPod on Instagram

@‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

@‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

Here's our RSS feed

Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.

About this episode:  
Could applying a public health approach to issues like education, crime, and the environment help tackle some of society's most pressing challenges? That's what one researcher argues in a new book titled "Imagine Doing Better: Why Policies Backfire and How Prevention Thinking Can Change Everything." In this episode: Author and professor Paul Fleming discusses his new book, a generational approach to policymaking, and the power of collective action.
Guest: 
Paul Fleming, PhD, MPH, is an associate professor of health behavior and health equity at the University of Michigan School of Public Health and co-founder of the Collaborative for Transformative Public Health.
Host: 
Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. 
Show links and related content: 
Imagine Doing Better: Why Policies Backfire and How Prevention Thinking Can Change Everything—Johns Hopkins University Press

Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
Contact us:
Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
Follow us:
@‌PublicHealthPod on Bluesky

@‌PublicHealthPod on Instagram

@‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

@‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

Here's our RSS feed

Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.

About this episode:  
Over four million children in the United States are uninsured, while many more lack health insurance that adequately meets their care needs. A proposed bill aims to fix that by providing universal health coverage for everyone aged zero to 26. In this episode: Senator Andy Kim, sponsor of the MediKids Act, on why now is the right time for this bill to become law and how it can be implemented by building on the existing Medicaid framework.
Guest: 
Andy Kim, PhD, is a U.S. Senator from New Jersey. He previously held roles at the Pentagon, State Department, and White House.
Host: 
Dr. Josh Sharfstein is distinguished professor of the practice in Health Policy and Management, a pediatrician, and former secretary of Maryland's Health Department. He served as the Baltimore City Commissioner of Health from 2005 to 2009. 
Show links and related content: 
MediKids Act—Congress.gov

U.S. and State-by-State Child Health Coverage Trends—Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy

Underinsurance Among Children in the United States—Pediatrics

Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
Contact us:
Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
Follow us:
@‌PublicHealthPod on Bluesky

@‌PublicHealthPod on Instagram

@‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

@‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

Here's our RSS feed

Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.

About this episode:  
New research has identified massive fungal blooms in North America in the Cretaceous period, suggesting significant ecological upheaval before and after the asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs. In this episode: Arturo Casadevall, senior author of the study, explains why these findings are so significant and his hypothesis that fungi gave mammals an evolutionary leg-up over reptiles.
Guest: 
Dr. Arturo Casadevall, PhD, MS, is chair of the department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a global expert in host defense mechanisms, fungi, and antibody-based therapies. He is also co-author of the book What If Fungi Win? with Stephanie Desmon.
Host: 
Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs.
Show links and related content: 
Fungal Surges Marked Cretaceous Mass Extinction that Ended Age of Dinosaurs—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

What zombie show 'The Last of Us' gets right about fungus in a warming world—Washington Post

What If Fungi Win?—Johns Hopkins University Press

The Discovery of a New Clade of Candida Auris—A "Critical Pathogen"—Public Health On Call (August 2024)

Transcript information:
Looking for episode transcripts? Open our podcast on the Apple Podcasts app (desktop or mobile) or the Spotify mobile app to access an auto-generated transcript of any episode. Closed captioning is also available for every episode on our YouTube channel.
Contact us:
Have a question about something you heard? Looking for a transcript? Want to suggest a topic or guest? Contact us via email or visit our website.
Follow us:
@‌PublicHealthPod on Bluesky

@‌PublicHealthPod on Instagram

@‌JohnsHopkinsSPH on Facebook

@‌PublicHealthOnCall on YouTube

Here's our RSS feed

Note: These podcasts are a conversation between the participants, and do not represent the position of Johns Hopkins University.