Please don’t keep your opinions to yourself

Plus: Op-eds from Sen. Ron Wyden, former CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, and others

September 21, 2025 Check out STAT+

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By Torie Bosch First Opinion editor

Big news: The First Opinion Podcast will be back in just a week and a half. This season, which launches Wednesday, Oct. 1, will offer a little bit of a refresh to the show, as you can hear on the trailer. I'll be speaking to someone who contracted dysentery as part of a vaccine trial, a major social media influencer, two people who campaigned against anti-vaccine bills in a red state, and more. While several episodes are already recorded or scheduled, I have some slots left. So let me know: Who do you want to hear on the show? Many of the interviewees on the show are authors of recent First Opinion essays, but not all of them — in the past, I've spoken with Mark Cuban and the neurosurgeon who consults on "Severance," for instance. Got any other feedback on the podcast? As long as it's not about the sound of my voice, I want to hear it. Email me at torie.bosch@statnews.com or just reply to this newsletter. You can sign up to get an email when each new episode drops. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or whatever platform you use to get your show. (I'm an Overcast partisan myself.) New episodes will publish every Wednesday this fall. Recommendation of the week: As we get to Halloween season, I'm rewatching some of my favorite horror movies. This week, I treated myself to the excellent "The Invitation" (2015), which is about grief, community, and a very dark dinner party.

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Courtesy Josie Glausiusz The Trump admin's cruel disbanding of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium Because of the disbanding of the PBTC, children with rare brain cancers may be denied new and promising treatments. By Josie Glausiusz I'm a doctor — and I introduce myself by my first name "No matter how clearly or loudly I claim my credentials, I am still often not seen as a doctor," the author writes. So she uses her first name. By Jenny Tsai STAT+ | Why pharma companies are suddenly pausing investment in the U.K. Merck. AstraZeneca. Eli Lilly. Sanofi. All are pulling back on investments in the U.K. A pharma expert explains why. By David Grainger Adobe STAT+ | Four reasons why generative AI chatbots could lead to psychosis in vulnerable people By confirming delusions, large language models like ChatGPT can make users vulnerable to mental health problems. By Matcheri Keshavan, Walid Yassin, and John Torous Pro sports leagues should do away with injury reports Pro sports leagues' injury disclosure system, intended to prevent unfair gambling advantages, are an invasion of privacy. By Trevan Klug, Yaron Covo, and Mihir Gupta Covid-19 vaccines protect children from severe disease. Here is the evidence Studies show Covid-19 vaccines are safe in children and protect them from severe disease, including death, former CDC director writes. By Rochelle Walensky Nam Y. Huh/AP The coming fragmentation of vaccination social order The U.S. may soon face a patchwork of immunization governance across the country. States, clinicians, and families must prepare. By Mark C. Navin and Katie Attwell STAT+ | Sen. Ron Wyden: RFK Jr.'s narrative on children and chronic illness is 'delusional' Republican health care cuts, backed by Kennedy, threaten millions of kids' access to health care that prevents chronic conditions from developing. By Ron Wyden Tylenol in pregnancy: a question of safety or control? Pregnant people with headaches, nausea, or depression are too often told that their suffering is always worth it. By Christine Henneberg Adobe I'm a former CDC director. I'm deeply concerned about the future of vaccines in the U.S. Former CDC Director Rochelle Walensky writes that politicians are using real and perceived Covid shortcomings to limit vaccine access By Rochelle Walensky The MAHA children's health report falls short on better pesticide regulation The MAHA Commission sounded the alarm about glyphosate in its May report. Now, it has opted not to encourage stronger regulation. By Dina Akhmetshina

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