Policy & Ethics

Where science meets society: regulatory decisions, research ethics, public health policy, and the debates around how scientific knowledge is applied, funded, and communicated.

From time immemorial, there has been a morbid fascination with conversing with those who have passed to the hereafter.
Join Dr. Chuck Dinerstein and Cam English on the Science Dispatch podcast as they discuss:
A Litigation Boom Over Roundup
Medical panic often begins with the aesthetics of mathematics. It arrives coated in charts, percentages, thresholds, risk scores, and trend lines, all carrying the aura of objectivity and rigor.
The government’s misguided attempt to address the opioid overdoses did more than change prescribing practices. It changed the relationship between doctors and patients, and not for the better.
In a recent Cato blog post, I discussed several factors that may be contributing to the current and welcome drop in overdose deaths.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently reported that overdose deaths during the 12-month period ending in December 2025 declined by 13.9