Latest news with #healthreport
The Verge
2 days ago
- Health
- The Verge
RFK Jr.'s ‘Make America Healthy Again' report seems riddled with AI slop
There are some questionable sources underpinning Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s controversial 'Make America Healthy Again' commission report. Signs point to AI tomfoolery, and the use of ChatGPT specifically, which calls into question the veracity of the White House report meant to address reasons for the decline in US life expectancy. An investigation by NOTUS found dozens of errors in the MAHA report, including broken links, wrong issue numbers, and missing or incorrect authors. Some studies were misstated to back up the report's conclusions or, more damningly, didn't exist at all. At least seven of the cited sources were entirely fictitious, according to NOTUS. Another investigation by The Washington Post found that at least 37 of the 522 citations appeared multiple times throughout the report. Notably, the URLs of several references included 'oaicite,' a marker that OpenAI applies to responses provided by artificial intelligence models like ChatGPT, which strongly suggests it was used in developing the report. Generative AI tools have a tendency to spit out false or incorrect information, known as 'hallucinations.' That would certainly explain the various errors throughout the report — chatbots have been found responsible for similar citation issues in legal filings submitted by AI experts and even the companies building the models. Nevertheless, RFK Jr. has long advocated for the 'AI revolution,' and announced during a House committee meeting in May that 'we are already using these new technologies to manage health care data more efficiently and securely.' In a briefing on Thursday, press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to concerns about the accuracy of the citations while evading any mention of AI tools. Leavitt described the errors as 'formatting issues' and defended the health report for being 'backed on good science that has never been recognized by the federal government.' The Washington Post notes that the MAHA report file was updated on Thursday to remove some of the oaicite markers and replace some of the nonexistent sources with alternative citations. In a statement given to the publication, Department of Health and Human Services spokesman Andrew Nixon said 'minor citation and formatting errors have been corrected, but the substance of the MAHA report remains the same — a historic and transformative assessment by the federal government to understand the chronic disease epidemic afflicting our nation's children.'
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
RFK Jr. faces AI scandal after allegedly using ChatGPT for MAHA report
The stunning appearance of multiple citation errors in Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s 'Make America Healthy Again' report could be due to the sloppy use of Artificial Intelligence, according to experts and telltale indicators. The White House and the Health and Human Services Department were forced to respond Thursday to a bombshell report that identified multiple citations to academic articles buried within the report that did not actually exist. Some of the errors appeared to carry hallmarks of generative AI which users have found is designed to provide an authoritative sounding answer when producing copy as it scrapes the internet for content and information. Some references contain 'oaicite', which is indicative of the use of OpenAI , in their URLs. The citation errors were confirmed by human beings who either said they didn't write some of the studies listed, or that their work relating to the health issues at hand came in other formats and publications. Some said interpretations of their data were also incorrect. 'The paper cited is not a real paper that I or my colleagues were involved with,' epidemiologist Katherine Keyes told NOTUS , which exposed many of the lapses. The feds have since purged seven citations from the report, which Kennedy released with much fanfare days ago. Another academic whose work got cited, Mariana G. Figueiro, told the publication: 'The conclusions in the report are not accurate and the journal reference is incorrect. It was not published in Pediatrics. Also, the study was not done in children, but in college students.' Thirty-seven of the report's citations occur multiple times, according to the Washington Post . 'Frankly, that's shoddy work,' Oren Etzioni, an AI expert at the University of Washington told the paper. 'We deserve better.' At the White House Thursday, a reporter asked White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt directly if Kennedy and his team of cabinet members who compiled the report relied on AI. 'I can't speak to that. I would refer you to the Department of Health and Human Services. What I know is just what I told you,' she responded. 'We have complete confidence in Secretary Kennedy and his team at HHS,' she said, when asked about the reports that unearthed the fake references. 'I understand there was some formatting issues with the MAHA report that are being addressed and the report will be updated,' she said. 'But it does not negate the substance of the report, which, as you know, is one of the most transformative health reports that has ever been released by the federal government is and is backed on good science that has never been recognized by the federal government. RFK, Jr., who has already drawn controversy for sowing doubts about vaccines and other views, gushed about the report before its release, which came after his team had a single public meeting. 'The report is the product of a consensual process, and it represents a collaborative effort of all the agencies and the White House. And it represents a consensus that is probably the strongest and most radical consensus by a government agency in history about the state of America's health,' he said. 'MAHA's become hot,' President Trump said of RFK, Jr.'s 'Make America Healthy Again' push. Before its release some farm state Republican lawmakers had raised concerns that the MAHA report would go after pesticides and farm practices they consider critical for farm efficiency. The report calls to examine the 'over-utilization of medication' such as steroids and questions the childhood vaccine schedule. But the author identified with a study showing a jump in use of corticosteroids 'denied writing it,' according to NOTUS, and called the conclusion an 'overgeneralization' of his other findings. The number of errors mushroomed this week as more outsiders picked at the purported data. Psychiatry Professor Robert L. Findling didn't write the report attributed to him on 'Direct-to-consumer advertising of psychotropic medications for youth: A growing concern.' Teeing off on the revelations was Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington. 'What do you know? Secretary released areport with made-up sources,' she said, attaching emojis for a brain and a worm. 'This fully discredits the MAHA Commission report. RFK Jr. is a deranged conspiracy theorist, so no one should be surprised by his lies, but we should still call them out,' she wrote.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
RFK Jr. faces AI scandal after 'using ChatGPT' for his big MAHA report
The stunning appearance of multiple citation errors in Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s 'Make America Healthy Again' report could be due to the sloppy use of Artificial Intelligence, according to experts and telltale indicators. The White House and the Health and Human Services Department were forced to respond Thursday to a bombshell report that identified multiple citations to academic articles buried within the report that did not actually exist. Some of the errors appeared to carry hallmarks of generative AI which users have found is designed to provide an authoritative sounding answer when producing copy as it scrapes the internet for content and information. Some references contain 'oaicite', which is indicative of the use of OpenAI, in their URLs. The citation errors were confirmed by human beings who either said they didn't write some of the studies listed, or that their work relating to the health issues at hand came in other formats and publications. Some said interpretations of their data were also incorrect. 'The paper cited is not a real paper that I or my colleagues were involved with,' epidemiologist Katherine Keyes told NOTUS, which exposed many of the lapses. The feds have since purged seven citations from the report, which Kennedy released with much fanfare days ago. Another academic whose work got cited, Mariana G. Figueiro, told the publication: 'The conclusions in the report are not accurate and the journal reference is incorrect. It was not published in Pediatrics. Also, the study was not done in children, but in college students.' Thirty-seven of the report's citations occur multiple times, according to the Washington Post. 'Frankly, that's shoddy work,' Oren Etzioni, an AI expert at the University of Washington told the paper. 'We deserve better.' At the White House Thursday, a reporter asked White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt directly if Kennedy and his team of cabinet members who compiled the report relied on AI. 'I can't speak to that. I would refer you to the Department of Health and Human Services. What I know is just what I told you,' she responded. 'We have complete confidence in Secretary Kennedy and his team at HHS,' she said, when asked about the reports that unearthed the fake references. 'I understand there was some formatting issues with the MAHA report that are being addressed and the report will be updated,' she said. 'But it does not negate the substance of the report, which, as you know, is one of the most transformative health reports that has ever been released by the federal government is and is backed on good science that has never been recognized by the federal government. RFK, Jr., who has already drawn controversy for sowing doubts about vaccines and other views, gushed about the report before its release, which came after his team had a single public meeting. 'The report is the product of a consensual process, and it represents a collaborative effort of all the agencies and the White House. And it represents a consensus that is probably the strongest and most radical consensus by a government agency in history about the state of America's health,' he said. 'MAHA's become hot,' President Trump said of RFK, Jr.'s 'Make America Healthy Again' push. Before its release some farm state Republican lawmakers had raised concerns that the MAHA report would go after pesticides and farm practices they consider critical for farm efficiency. The report calls to examine the 'over-utilization of medication' such as steroids and questions the childhood vaccine schedule. But the author identified with a study showing a jump in use of corticosteroids 'denied writing it,' according to NOTUS, and called the conclusion an 'overgeneralization' of his other findings. The number of errors mushroomed this week as more outsiders picked at the purported data. Psychiatry Professor Robert L. Findling didn't write the report attributed to him on 'Direct-to-consumer advertising of psychotropic medications for youth: A growing concern.'
CBS News
2 days ago
- Business
- CBS News
RFK Jr.'s "MAHA" report contained nonexistent studies. White House says it will be updated.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s "Make America Healthy Again" report on the causes of chronic disease in children cited over 500 studies, but several of those studies didn't exist, the digital news outlet NOTUS found. NOTUS on Thursday found seven of the studies cited appear never to have been published. An author of one of the studies said while she did conduct research on anxiety in children, she did not author the report that was listed in the MAHA report. Some studies were also misinterpreted in the report. The problematic citations were on topics around children's screen time, medication use and anxiety. Multiple current and former federal health officials had already raised a number of issues with the report, which they said misstated several facts and left out already well-documented drivers known to be causing chronic disease in children that health authorities are already working to address. The report described growing rates of several health issues, including childhood obesity, diabetes, autism, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, cancer, allergies and autoimmune disorders. It blamed poor diet and ultra-processed foods, lack of physical activity, chronic stress and too many prescriptions and vaccines for children's health disorders. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked by reporters about the nonexistent studies Thursday and said the report would be updated. "I understand there was some formatting issues with the MAHA report that are being addressed and the report will be updated." Leavitt said during the White House briefing. "But it does not negate the substance of the report, which, as you know, is one of the most transformative health reports that has ever been released by the federal government. Kennedy has repeatedly said he'd bring "radical transparency" and "gold-standard" science to the public health agencies. But the secretary refused to release details about who authored the 72-page report, which calls for increased scrutiny of the childhood vaccine schedule and describes the nation's children as overmedicated and undernourished. Leavitt said that the White House has "complete confidence" in Kennedy. "Minor citation and formatting errors have been corrected," HHS Spokesman Andrew Nixon said in an emailed statement. He described the report as a "historic and transformative assessment by the federal government to understand the chronic disease epidemic afflicting our nation's children." The report is supposed to be used to develop policy recommendations that will be released later this year. The White House has requested a $500 million boost in funding from Congress for Kennedy's MAHA initiative. contributed to this report.
CBC
2 days ago
- Business
- CBC
White House blames 'formatting issues' in health report that cited non-existent studies
Social Sharing The wide-ranging "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) report spearheaded by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. cited hundreds of studies, but a closer look by the news organization NOTUS found that some of those studies did not actually exist. Asked about the report's problems on Thursday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the report will be updated. She did not directly respond to a question of whether artificial intelligence had been used to generate the 72-page report, which calls for increased scrutiny of the childhood vaccine schedule and decried America's food supply, pesticides and prescription drugs. "I understand there was some formatting issues with the MAHA report that are being addressed and the report will be updated." Leavitt told reporters during her briefing. "But it does not negate the substance of the report, which, as you know, is one of the most transformative health reports that has ever been released by the federal government." Leavitt said that the White House has "complete confidence" in Kennedy. NOTUS reported Thursday that seven of the more than 500 studies cited in the report did not appear to have ever been published, while its report said some studies were also misinterpreted in the MAHA report. Katherine Keyes, an epidemiology professor at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, was cited in the report as the author of "Changes in mental health and substance use among US adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic," which the report said was published in the medical journal JAMA Pediatrics. Report 'should be junked': public health official Keyes told Reuters that neither she nor the named co-authors of the paper had written it. According to Virginia Commonwealth University, psychiatry professor Robert L. Findling — who teaches at that school — did not author the article cited in the report as "Direct-to-consumer advertising of psychotropic medications for youth: A growing concern" in the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology. The studies attributed to Findling and Keyes no longer appeared in the MAHA report on the White House website as of Thursday evening. Kennedy has spent decades sowing doubt about the safety of vaccines, raising concerns within the scientific and medical communities over the policies he would pursue as health secretary. Since taking the role, thousands of workers at federal health agencies have been fired and billions cut from U.S. biomedical research spending — though at times in congressional testimony, Kennedy has professed a lack of knowledge of some of the layoffs. WATCH | Kennedy was confirmed, even after contentious confirmation: RFK Jr. grilled over vaccines, abortions at U.S. confirmation hearing 4 months ago Duration 2:06 U.S. health secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sparred with lawmakers over his controversial statements on vaccines and abortion at his first confirmation hearing. He also made several factual errors about how Medicaid and Medicare operate. The MAHA report is supposed to be used to develop policy recommendations that will be released later this year. The White House has requested a $500 million US boost in funding from Congress for the initiative. Georges C. Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, told the Washington Post that, "for all practical purposes, [the report] should be junked at this point." "It cannot be used for any policymaking. It cannon even be used for any serious discussion, because you can't believe what's in it. COVID, bird flu vaccine announcements questioned It was the latest development in a busy week for Kennedy and the department. On Tuesday, he announced in a brief video that COVID-19 vaccines are no longer recommended for healthy children and pregnant women — a move immediately questioned by several public health experts. A Centers for Diseases Control (CDC) advisory panel is set to meet in June to make recommendations about the fall shots, but Kennedy decided not to wait for the scientific panel's review. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary and Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, head of the National Institutes of Health, appeared in the video with Kennedy, but no one from CDC did. "There's no new data or information, just them flying by the seat of their pants," said Michael Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy. Some physicians and public health leaders expressed concern that Health and Human Services officials disregarded a scientific review process that has been in place for decades, in which experts — in public meetings — review current medical evidence and hash out the pros and cons of policy changes. "It's a dangerous precedent," said Osterholm. Among the problems, experts said, was the implication that the coronavirus isn't dangerous to pregnant women. During the height of the pandemic, deaths of women during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth soared to their highest level in 50 years. As well, pregnancy was on the list of health conditions that would qualify someone for a COVID-19 vaccination under FDA's new guidance framework announced just last week. "To say that they are not at any risk is simply incorrect," said Dr. Sean O'Leary of the American Academy of Pediatrics. As well, the The Trump administration this week cancelled $766 million US paid to Moderna for vaccine development. Moderna received $176 million US in July 2024 and $590 million in January. The January award would have supported a late-stage clinical trial that could have determined vaccine efficacy against pandemic viruses, including bird flu, a company spokesman said on Wednesday. H5N1 bird flu viruses spilled from wild bird into cattle in the U.S. last year, infecting hundreds of animals in several states. At least 70 people in the U.S. have been sickened by bird flu infections, mostly mild, but one person died.
