STAT investigates the epidemic killing 178,000 Americans a year

The Deadliest Drug STAT investigates the epidemic killing 178,000 Americans a year A letter to readers from Executive Editor Rick Berke on the new series ‘The Deadliest Drug’ Manage alerts for this article Email this article Share this article By Rick BerkeMay 14, 2026 Co-founder & Executive Editor Rick Berke[email protected] Dear Readers, I want to bring your attention to “The Deadliest Drug,” a new STAT investigative series about our nation’s failure to address excessive alcohol use, and how it goes unimpeded as a top cause of disease, injury, and death.Advertisement It’s an extraordinary story that has been hiding in plain sight: Alcohol kills 178,000 Americans each year and sickens countless more. Yet the mass deaths are not an inevitability. Our reporting reveals that this epidemic is a generational failure of the medical and public health systems, of industry, and of government — and that the Trump administration is squandering a unique opportunity to fix the problem. “The Deadliest Drug” emerges from rigorous, impartial, and authoritative reporting by Isabella Cueto and Lev Facher. They traveled the country to interview more than 100 researchers, public health experts, doctors, patients, industry insiders, and lawmakers. They pored over scientific literature, treatment protocols, public health guidance, and lobbying disclosures from alcohol companies and trade groups. This article, previewing six takeaways from the series, is free to everyone. I hope this only whets your appetite to subscribe to STAT so you can read all of the deep, meticulously reported stories in the series, including an installment published today about the seismic shift in 12-step programs, and a story published yesterday about a new, uniquely American category of liver disease. This Tuesday, we examine a startling rise in drinking during pregnancy. Right now, you can get your first three months of STAT+ for just $30 and access the entire series, as well as all of our essential journalism.Advertisement Isabella and Lev were perfectly suited to team up on this project: For nearly four years, Lev has covered addiction, and his work includes an award-winning investigation that exposed how the U.S. denies lifesaving medications to people with opioid addiction. Over the same period, Isabella, STAT’s chronic disease reporter, has become an authority on how the Trump administration has tackled the nation’s health epidemic, and taken readers inside the world of MAHA. Data editor J. Emory Parker complements their reporting with original data analysis and multiple, powerful charts. Beyond this series, subscribers gain access to must-read stories for everyone who works in health and medicine — and anyone who is touched by health issues. For months we’ve revealed the turbulence in the tenure of FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, who resigned this week. STAT’s Matthew Herper, who has covered the FDA for 25 years, weighed in thoughtfully on why Makary was “the worst FDA commissioner in 25 years.” On a more upbeat note, Adam Feuerstein laid out why the new acting commissioner seems likely to be “drama free.” Last week, FDA reporter Lizzy Lawrence and senior multimedia producer Alex Hogan published a riveting text and video oral history featuring interviews with six former FDA staffers who described the work they never thought they’d leave. With Bill Cassidy, the Senate’s once-commanding voice on health care, facing an uphill primary race on Saturday, our D.C. reporters Chelsea Cirruzzo and Daniel Payne traveled to Louisiana to talk to his friends and foes. Their deep dive explains why — win or lose — Cassidy seems unlikely to ever recover from his collapse in stature and power. Besides access to such exclusive STAT stories, you also can receive subscriber-only newsletters on AI, pharma, and biotech, and special invitations to our events around the country. This Tuesday, we have a day of powerhouse speakers at our Breakthrough Summit West in San Francisco. Subscribers get deep discounts to attend in person or virtually. Trust me, the audience is always rapt at our summits.Advertisement Already, readers’ reaction to our “Deadliest Drug” series has been rewarding. One prominent alcohol researcher wrote: “The series is unique! It is the most important, comprehensive, and accessible series of articles on alcohol and health that I have witnessed in my entire career of being a researcher and practitioner in this field.” Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or feedback about STAT. I’m at [email protected]. addiction, chronic disease, public health Submit a correction requestReprints Rick Berke Co-founder & Executive Editor Newsletter Understand how science, health policy, and medicine shape the world every day Recommended Don't Miss February 18, 2026 STAT wins fourth Polk Award for reporting on impact of Trump on health Don't Miss December 30, 2025 STAT’s most memorable photos of 2025 Advertisement Don't Miss December 29, 2025 We wish we’d written that: STAT staffers share their favorite stories of 2025 Don't Miss December 19, 2025 A letter from STAT’s Rick Berke on a tumultuous year in health and science Don't Miss October 15, 2025 Meet the 2025 STAT Wunderkinds Subscriber Picks