First published 2016
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. investigates how the CDC orchestrated a massive cover-up in 2000 to hide potential links between vaccines and autism. The agency conducted secret meetings to manipulate data from six vaccine safety studies, investing tens of millions in a Danish analytics startup led by scientist Poul Thorsen. The CDC needed an outsider to alter study results while serving as a potential scapegoat if their plan surfaced. Thorsen seemed perfect for the role, operating from overseas and beyond direct oversight. But the scheme collapsed when Thorsen began funneling CDC grant money through a Danish university into accounts he controlled. In 2011, the Justice Department indicted him for stealing over one million dollars. Kennedy exposes how pharmaceutical money, lobbying pressure, and promises of lucrative future jobs drove CDC executives to betray their mission of protecting children's health.
Genres: biography-memoir, health, medical-ethics, activism, american-history
Vibes: suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: conspiracy, whistleblower
Setting: Denmark
Period: 2000s
221 pages · Kindle Edition · Skyhorse
Content warnings: medical-trauma