Flexner Report (1910)
artifact
A single 1910 foundation report shut down half of America's medical schools and locked in one narrow model of medicine for a century.
Who they are
The Flexner Report, a 1910 evaluation of medical education funded by the Carnegie Foundation and backed by the AMA.
What they do
It judged 155 medical schools and demanded they all follow one strict, drug-and-lab-based model.
How it works
Between 1910 and 1935 more than half of U.S. medical schools closed or merged. Homeopathic schools fell from 22 to 2, herbal and eclectic schools were nearly wiped out, Black medical schools dropped from over 20 to just 2 (Howard and Meharry), and nearly all women's medical colleges closed. Standardization reportedly prevented tens of thousands of deaths a year, but also created a rigid system prone to mismanaging chronic disease and to industry capture.
Why it matters
It's the founding document behind a century of narrow, capturable medicine, with lasting damage to alternative approaches and to Black and women's medical training.
The engine's record — word for word
*Medical Education in the United States and Canada* — commissioned by the Carnegie Foundation, supported by the AMA. Abraham Flexner's evaluation of 155 medical schools mandated strict adherence to the biomedical/reductionist Johns Hopkins-style allopathic model. **Effect:** between 1910-1935, more than half of American medical schools were forced to merge or close. Homeopathic schools 22→2. Eclectic + botanical schools virtually eliminated. Historically Black medical schools 20+→2 (only Howard + Meharry survived). All but one Women's Medical College closed. NBER analysis: closures averted ~16K infant + ~38K non-infant deaths/yr via standardization, AND created the structural rigidity that produced 100-year chronic-disease mismanagement + regulatory capture. Foundational artifact of the 100-year medicine capture architecture.
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