What happens when public health policy collides with the foundational principles of medical ethics?
In this thought-provoking episode of The React19 Podcast, Ann sits down with psychiatrist, medical ethicist, and author Aaron Kheriaty to explore the ethical questions raised by the COVID-19 era and why those questions remain critically important today.
Dr. Kheriaty shares his journey from directing medical ethics at UC Irvine School of Medicine to challenging COVID vaccine mandates in federal court and becoming a plaintiff in the landmark free speech case Missouri v. Biden. Together, they examine informed consent, bodily autonomy, censorship, public health policy, and the growing tension between individual rights and utilitarian approaches to healthcare.
The conversation goes beyond mandates and lawsuits to address deeper philosophical questions: What does it mean to be human? What is the proper role of medicine? Can science answer every question, or has society embraced scientism in place of genuine scientific inquiry? And what are the consequences when health becomes society's highest value?
Drawing from his books The New Abnormal and Making the Cut, Dr. Kheriaty offers a compelling framework for understanding the ethical, cultural, and spiritual challenges exposed during the pandemic—and why those lessons matter for the future.
Resources
The New Abnormal: The Rise of the Biomedical Security State
https://www.amazon.com/New-Abnormal-Biomedical-Security-State/dp/B0B5M41RTW
Making the Cut: How to Heal Modern Medicine
https://www.amazon.com/Making-Cut-Heal-Modern-Medicine/dp/B0G3XYK24W/
Follow Aaron at:
https://aaronkheriaty.substack.com/
https://www.aaronkheriaty.com/
About Dr. Aaron Kheriaty
Dr. Aaron Kheriaty is a psychiatrist, medical ethicist, and author. He previously served as Professor of Psychiatry and Director of Medical Ethics at UC Irvine School of Medicine, where he received the Excellence in Teaching Award three consecutive years. He currently serves as Director of Bioethics and American Democracy Programs at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and advises several organizations focused on ethics, public policy, and civil liberties. He is the author of five books, including The New Abnormal and Making the Cut.
In This Episode
03:25 – Dr. Kheriaty's background in philosophy, medicine, and bioethics
05:50 – His role in developing COVID policies within the University of California system
07:10 – Why he challenged COVID vaccine mandates and the ethical foundation of informed consent
08:50 – The Nuremberg Code and its relevance to modern medical ethics
11:25 – His lawsuit against UC Irvine and the consequences of challenging the mandate
14:05 – Missouri v. Biden: government censorship, social media, and free speech
25:00 – Utilitarianism versus individual rights in public health policy
36:00 – Science vs. scientism: what happens when science becomes ideology
39:00 – Why censorship undermines genuine scientific inquiry
44:00 – Lockdowns, loneliness, mental health, addiction, and deaths of despair
52:00 – Human flourishing, meaning, and the danger of reducing people to biology alone
55:00 – Death, medicine, and the limits of science
58:00 – Transhumanism and the promise of overcoming death through technology
1:02:00 – Vaccine mandates, informed consent, and individual liberty
1:03:20 – Liability protections, pharmaceutical accountability, and public trust
1:08:45 – Why children should never be used as instruments to achieve public health goals
1:11:30 – Jacobson v. Massachusetts, Buck v. Bell, and the legal history of bodily autonomy
1:16:20 – The ongoing struggles of the vaccine injured and the work of React19
1:20:00 – Hope for the future: changing public awareness, speaking truth, and restoring human dignity