U.S. Surgeon General Issues Advisory on Confronting Health Misinformation

This week, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued the Biden-Harris Administration’s first health advisory, warning the American public about the urgent threat of health misinformation. As indicated by the U.S. Health and Human Services, health misinformation and disinformation have threated the U.S. response to the COVID-19 pandemic and continue to prevent Americans from receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. Notably, Surgeon General Murthy calls on technology and social media companies to take more responsibility to stop the spread of health misinformation.

The Surgeon General’s advisory identifies strategies for the nation to confront health misinformation by helping individuals, families, and communities better identify and limit its spread. The advisory also identifies approaches to address misinformation among education, media, medicine, research, and governmental sectors.

The full health advisory from the U.S. Surgeon General is available here.