Ep. 40: Bad Blood

Ep. 40: Bad Blood

June 24, 2026 · 1h 0m

About this episode

The episode discusses the U.S. Public Health Service Syphilis Study at Tuskegee, highlighting the deception faced by the men involved and the ethical implications that arose from it.

For forty years, the U.S. government promised free healthcare to a group of men who needed it most. What they delivered instead was decades of deliberate, documented deception. This week, Andrea and Crystal break down the U.S. Public Health Service Syphilis Study at Tuskegee: how it started, why it kept going long after a cure existed, and the nurse caught in the middle of it all. We trace the men behind the headlines, the whistleblower who finally ended it, and the bioethics rules that exist today because of what happened to them. It's a hard one. It's also one of the most important episodes we've made.** Please note, we are aware that Crystal mispronounces "Tuskegee" throughout this episode - our sincerest apologies **

People in this episode

Hosts: Andrea, Crystal

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: U.S. Public Health Service

Places: Tuskegee

More episodes of M⁴: Medicine, Mystery, Mayhem... and Sometimes Murder

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the M⁴: Medicine, Mystery, Mayhem... and Sometimes Murder podcast page.