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# Health Misinformation Hurts Life Expectancy: Califf
- URL: https://www.fdaweb.com/health-misinformation-hurts-life-expectancy-califf/
- Published: 2023-04-11T12:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-14T18:24:53.000Z
- Author: David McFarland
- Tags: FDA Policy/General, #legacy-id-D5154187

Life expectancy in the U.S. is three to five years lower than the average in other high-income countries and one reason is the extent of health misinformation. That’s the view of FDA commissioner **Robert Califf**, presented in a wide-ranging [interview](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/04/11/us-life-expectancy-hurt-by-misinformation-fda-commissioner-robert-califf.html?ref=fdaweb.com) with CNBC.

“It’s looking worse, not better, over the last several years,” Califf declared. “Why aren’t we using medical products as effectively and efficiently as our peer countries? A lot of it has to do with choices that people make because of the things that influenced their thinking.”

Califf sees a need for better regulation, including “specific authorities at FDA, FTC, and other areas,” to go after misinformation. “You think about the impact of a single person reaching a billion people on the Internet all over the world,” Califf said. “We just weren’t prepared for that. We don’t have societal rules that are adjudicating it quite right, and I think it’s impacting our health in very detrimental ways.”

Other topics Califf covered in the interview were efforts to cut drug prices, incentives for research, and new obesity drugs.