One Journalist’s Fight for Eating Disorder Care

For people with eating disorders, getting the care they’re entitled to under the law can feel impossible — and investigative journalist Eli Cahan wanted to know why.

A physician and journalist, Cahan received a Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism from The Carter Center, which empowered him to dig into a troubling pattern: People with eating disorders are routinely denied care they’re entitled to — with little to no enforcement in sight.

His reporting puts a human face on a broken system, told with the help of people who bravely shared their stories in hopes of driving change.

Behind every statistic, Cahan said, is a human being who’s been affected.

Cahan credits the fellowship with opening his eyes to the full landscape of the issue. He heard from experts and became part of a community of fellow journalists. The experience shaped the stories he tells and the way he tells them.

Over the last 30 years, The Carter Center has awarded nearly 300 fellowships, equipping reporters to inform the public about mental health and expose harmful practices and discrimination.