Aaron Kheriaty
Fellow
Aaron Kheriaty, MD, is a Fellow & Director of the Program in Bioethics and American Democracy at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. He is a physician specializing in psychiatry and author of three books, including most recently, The New Abnormal: The Rise of the Biomedical Security State (2022).
Dr. Kheriaty also serves as Senior Scholar and Fellow at the Brownstone Institute, Senior Fellow at the Zephyr Institute, Chief of Medical Ethics at The Unity Project, Scholar at the Paul Ramsey Institute, Fellow at the National Catholic Bioethics Center, and he serves on the advisory board at the Simone Weil Center for Political Philosophy.
Dr. Kheriaty graduated from the University of Notre Dame in philosophy and pre-medical sciences, earned his MD degree from Georgetown University, and completed residency training in psychiatry at the University of California Irvine. For many years he was Professor of Psychiatry at UCI School of Medicine and Director of the Medical Ethics Program at UCI Health, where he chaired the ethics committee. He also chaired the ethics committee at the California Department of State Hospitals for several years.
Dr. Kheriaty has authored books and articles for professional and lay audiences on bioethics, public health, political theory, social science, psychiatry, philosophy, religion, and culture. His work has been published in the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, Newsweek, The Federalist, Compact, The New Atlantis, Public Discourse, City Journal, and First Things. He has conducted print, radio, and television interviews on bioethics topics with The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, NBC, CBS, CNN, Fox, NPR, EWTN, and Epoch TV.
On matters of public policy and healthcare he has addressed the California Medical Association and has testified before the California Senate Health Committee and the United States Senate. Dr. Kheriaty has consulted on Covid related ethical issues during the pandemic for the University of California Office of the President, the County of Orange Healthcare Agency, and the California Department of Public Health.
You can follow him on Twitter at @akheriaty and subscribe to his newsletter at AaronKheriaty.Substack.com
EPPC Scholars Submit Public Comment Opposing OSHA’s Unlawful Vaccine Mandate
Roger Severino
EPPC scholars Roger Severino, Rachel N. Morrison, Dr. David Gortler, and Dr. Aaron Kheriaty submitted a public comment opposing finalization of OSHA’s rule that would mandate COVID-19 vaccination in workplaces.
Articles
Publications / January 20, 2022
INTERVIEW: Dr. Aaron Kheriaty Discusses COVID-19, Vaccine Mandates and His Dismissal From UC-Irvine
Aaron Kheriaty
EPPC Fellow Aaron Kheriaty, a Catholic psychiatrist and ethicist who was fired last month from the University of California-Irvine School of Medicine, explains why he made a principled stand in opposition to mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations.
Interviews
National Catholic Register / January 18, 2022
COVID Mandates Prevent Americans from Getting Back in the Game
Aaron Kheriaty
The same essential people who courageously worked on the frontlines defending us during COVID now face bullying from their peers and no support from the government of a country that was founded on freedom.
Articles
Fox News / January 10, 2022
Japan’s Vaccination Policy: No Force, No Discrimination
Aaron Kheriaty
Other nations would do well to follow Japan’s lead with this balanced and ethical approach.
Articles
Brownstone Institute / December 15, 2021
On the Rise of Our Technocratic Biosecurity Surveillance Regime
Aaron Kheriaty
Vaccine mandates and passports are an early and opportunistic step toward new modes of governance and social control.
Articles
Substack / November 29, 2021
Update: Letters from UC and CDC
Aaron Kheriaty
The CDC admits it has no evidence of a single case of a Covid-recovered individual subsequently getting reinfected and transmitting the virus. Yet UCI has placed EPPC Fellow Dr. Aaron Kheriaty on unpaid suspension.
Articles
Substack / November 13, 2021
Why the CDC Ignores Natural Immunity
Aaron Kheriaty
The science on the efficacy and durability of natural immunity is now overwhelming. Yet the CDC continues to recommend lifting restrictions on the vaccinated but not those who have recovered from Covid and have superior natural immunity.
Articles
Substack / October 23, 2021
Unpaid Suspension from the University
Aaron Kheriaty
EPPC Fellow Dr. Aaron Kheriaty details the latest turn in his conflict with the University of California over its vaccine mandate.
Articles
Substack / October 20, 2021
Judicial Precedents and Vaccine Mandates
Aaron Kheriaty
The 1905 Supreme Court Case of Jacobson v. Massachusetts is often cited to justify vaccine mandates and other Covid emergency measures. But what did that original case actually determine?
Articles
Substack / October 12, 2021
On Avoiding Bad Faith and Ad Hominem Arguments
Aaron Kheriaty
Civility and respect on social media can advance the pursuit of truth more than snark or sarcasm, but this requires patience, nuance, and a willingness to engage directly with our interlocutors. It’s more time consuming and difficult, but it is worthwhile.
Articles
Substack / September 29, 2021
Why I Am Challenging in Court the University of California’s Vaccine Mandate
Aaron Kheriaty
Medical exemptions for most vaccine mandates are too narrowly tailored, constraining physicians’ discretionary judgment and impairing individualized patient care. Heavy-handed mandates stigmatize and punish those who refuse to comply. Many aspects of our response to Covid no longer make sense.
Articles
Substack / September 23, 2021