© 2026 WRVO Public Media
NPR News for Central New York
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Cancer Doc Brawley Says The U.S. Health Care System Is Sick

Journalists make for a pretty tough crowd.

But Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society, fired up hundreds of them at the annual meeting of Association of Health Care Journalists over the weekend with a no-holds-barred critique of the U.S. health system.

Brawley has a book out, How We Do Harm: A Doctor Breaks Ranks About Being Sick in America, that makes his case in full. But in a sometimes dizzying speech in Atlanta, Brawley ripped the health establishment from top to bottom. It was bracing stuff.

The group just posted a video about the event.

Here are some of the highlights, as tweeted by journalists at the meeting, if you prefer.

.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Scott Hensley edits stories about health, biomedical research and pharmaceuticals for NPR's Science desk. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he has led the desk's reporting on the development of vaccines against the coronavirus.
Recent cuts to federal funding are challenging our mission to serve central and upstate New York with trusted journalism, vital local coverage, and the diverse programming that informs and connects our communities. This is the moment to join our community of supporters and help keep journalists on the ground, asking hard questions that matter to our region.

Stand with public media and make your gift today—not just for yourself, but for all who depend on WRVO as a trusted resource and civic cornerstone in central and upstate New York.