How to counter health misinformation when it’s coming from the top

2026/03/04 by Lisa K. Fazio · 1 voice
Medicine · Social Sciences · Health Professions · #Data-Driven Disease Surveillance #Misinformation and Its Impacts #Health Literacy and Information Accessibility

paper · pdf · doi:10.1080/00963402.2026.2628494

Abstract

Health misinformation is now being generated and spread by those in charge of the United States’ public health system. Multiple interventions against health misinformation have been identified and are effective, but many are challenging to implement in the current political environment. Effective interventions require accountability and societal repercussions for purveyors of disinformation, particularly those with power and large audiences.

Citations

• The Death of USAID: How Elon Musk and Donald Trump Ended America's Foreign Aid Agency

Discussions

• Health misinformation is most harmful when it is believed and spread by those in power- and that's exactly what we're seeing in the US. We need to reestablish societal consequences for lying & purpose [bsky, 75 points, 2 comments]

Related

• Social media and the spread of misinformation: infectious and a threat to public health
• Combating Health Misinformation in Social Media: Characterization, Detection, Intervention, and Open Issues
• Thinking clearly about misinformation
• Liars know they are lying: differentiating disinformation from disagreement
• Countering Misinformation