with Lauren Hall on the Medicalization of Giving Birth: Deep Dive
March 27, 2022
We all know the importance of birth and death. What most people don't seem to realize is the extent to which the beginning and end of our lives has been medicalized. In this episode, Juliette Sellgren and Dr. Lauren Hall talk about the variety of factors—often unrelated to the personal welfare of the individuals involved—that contribute to mom and babies having these incredibly personal events frequently reduced to a one-size-fits-all experience.
We all know the importance of birth and death. What most people don't seem to realize is the extent to which the beginning and end of our lives has been medicalized. In this episode, Juliette Sellgren and Dr. Lauren Hall talk about the variety of factors—often unrelated to the personal welfare of the individuals involved—that contribute to mom and babies having these incredibly personal events frequently reduced to a one-size-fits-all experience.
Listen to this episode
The Great Antidote: Lauren Hall on the Medicalization of Birth and Death | Adam Smith Works
About the podcast
Introducing The Great Antidote Podcast with Juliette Sellgren | Adam Smith Works
The guest: Lauren K. Hall
The Great Antidote: Lauren Hall on the Medicalization of Birth and Death | Adam Smith Works
About the podcast
Introducing The Great Antidote Podcast with Juliette Sellgren | Adam Smith Works
The guest: Lauren K. Hall
- Personal website, Rochester Institute of Technology faculty website
- YouTube Playlist
- Currently blogging at The Radical Moderate's Guide to Life – Moderation, Radically Done (radicalmoderatesguide.com) AND Radical Classical Liberals
- The book discussed: The Medicalization of Birth and Death
- Book summary: The Medicalization of Birth and Death | RIT
- Published commentary in U.S. News and World Report: Stop Meddling With Midwives and New Moms | Healthiest Communities Health News | US News
Other Liberty Fund content by Lauren Hall
- Adam Smith, Sympathy, and Spontaneous Social-Moral Order | Adam Smith Works
- Self Interest Rightly Understood | Adam Smith Works
- Adam Smith Questionnaire Video
- Are Kids Worth It? - Econlib
- The Surprising Hayekian Beauty of Buy Nothing Groups - Econlib
Related Liberty Fund content
- Richard Gunderman, Insights from Adam Smith on the Erosion of Sympathy in Medicine
- Amy Tuteur on Birth, Natural Parenting, and Push Back, an EconTalk podcast
- Michael Munger, I Was Saved by Division of Labor
People mentioned in this episode
- Ina May Gaskin: National Women's Hall of Fame entry, Wikipedia entry
- Neel Shah: Harvard professional website, New England Journal of Medicine article
- Emily Oster: personal website, Brown University professional website entry, Wikipedia entry, Substack subscription
- Matthew D. Mitchell: Mercatus Center professional website, Twitter account
- Harriett A. Washington: Wikipedia entry, Twitter account
Additional background resources on Certificate of Need legislation and medical regulation
- Matt Mitchell on CON laws and Occupational Licensing (thegreatantidote.com)
- Recent Working Paper by Lauren Hall and Matthew Mitchell: Midwifery Licensing: Medicalization of Birth and Special Interests | Mercatus Center
- Hill Burton Act (1946): Text of law, Wikipedia article
Additional background resources on risk assessments on pregnancy interventions
- Emily Oster on Pregnancy, Causation, and Expecting Better - Econlib (econtalk.org)
- Emily Oster's book: Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong--and What You Really Need to Know
Additional background on the history of Western medical researchers' abuse of Blacks from slavery to modern times
- Harriett Washington's book: Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black Americans from Colonial Times to the Present
Resources compiled by Christy Lynn