When should we reopen the economy?
How many more people will die if we do and how many will die if we don’t?
To help answer those questions, I spoke with Dr. John Ioannidis, author of some of the most cited scientific articles in history, in particular Why Most Published Research Findings Are False. He’s earned an almost mythical status among doctors as the Greek hero of meta-analysis. However, his views on COVID-19 have sparked controversy, with strong condemnation from some of his fellow researchers.
While many conservatives have tried to claim him for their own agenda, those on the other side of the spectrum have accused him of impropriety, claiming that he and colleagues were paid to mislead the public. The accusation is that Jet Blue’s CEO funded the research for the purpose of claiming that flights should resume, whether that's sensible or not. The issue is so politicized that I don't know whether to take the scandalous claims seriously or write them off as baseless conspiracy theories.
Luckily, many similar seroprevalence studies have been released since the Santa Clara study, and we don't have to rely on any one study. As New York City loosened lockdown measures this week, and more data accumulates, we explore how Dr. Ioannidis views have evolved. What does the new data from around the world tell us and what is the most sensible course of action, regardless of politics?
This COVID-19 recording is part of a larger discussion we had with Dr. Ioannidis about meta-analysis and his work on the effectiveness of antidepressants. If you'd like to hear that episode, subscribe to our free newsletter on invinciblewellbeing.com.