President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voiced strong support for the safety of established vaccines during a Thursday hearing, even as senators pressed her on the administration’s efforts to disrupt childhood immunization schedules.
Heidi Overton, MD, PhD, currently serving as a White House adviser, has been involved in several of Trump’s health initiatives. This includes an executive order calling for the division and spacing of long-standing childhood vaccinations. Overton, a physician, stood alongside Trump in the Oval Office when he claimed that the combined measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine could be “quite lethal.”
Senate Health Committee Chairman Sen. Bill Cassidy, MD, a physician from Louisiana, urged Overton to publicly reject the president’s assertion and confirm the safety of FDA-approved vaccines.
“Right now, every vaccine that is on the market has been determined to be safe and effective,” including the MMR vaccine, Overton stated.
Cassidy has repeatedly sought commitments from Trump administration health nominees to uphold scientific vaccine standards, including from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., only to see the administration proceed with policies that undermine vaccine utilization.
“Kennedy gave me guarantees, and he did not keep them,” Cassidy remarked. “If the president asks you to do something that goes against those guarantees you give us today, what will you do?”
Overton responded that she would “follow the statutory requirements” for FDA commissioners and provide Trump with her best advice. Later in the hearing, she declined to explicitly state that the president was incorrect about the MMR vaccine’s safety.
“This committee needs to know whether you will be radically honest, whether you will use your authority to stand up for sound science and protect children’s health,” Cassidy said. He did not indicate whether he would support Overton’s nomination or when a committee vote might be scheduled.
If confirmed, Overton would inherit several highly controversial projects at the agency, including a safety review of the nation’s primary abortion drug and new regulations facilitating the sale of flavored electronic cigarettes. Both topics drew significant attention from panel members across the aisle.
Overton Sidesteps Past Statements on Abortion Pill
The FDA approved the abortion pill mifepristone in 2000 and has repeatedly affirmed its safety while expanding access, including allowing the medication to be mailed to patients. However, Kennedy ordered an FDA review of the drug’s safety last year following pressure from anti-abortion groups and lawmakers advocating for abortion restrictions.
While working at the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute, Overton previously wrote that the FDA’s decision to permit mail delivery of mifepristone was “dangerous to women,” characterizing the practice as “chemical abortion on demand.”
During questioning from Washington Sen. Patty Murray, Overton avoided sharing her personal views on the drug, stating that it “has met the safety and efficacy determinations of the FDA.” She added that she did not wish to “prejudge” the agency’s ongoing safety review of the pill.
“The FDA has said this is safe,” responded Murray, a Democrat. “We need someone in the FDA to make sure this is done by science.”
Republicans on the health committee, including Cassidy, recently published a report suggesting that the small number of companies selling mifepristone may not be complying with regulations overseeing doctors who prescribe the drug.
“If I’m confirmed as commissioner, I would be committed to making sure every company is following the law,” Overton told Republican Sen. Jim Banks of Indiana.
Overton’s stance on abortion could complicate her efforts to win over two moderate Republicans on the panel: Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski. Both have broken with their party on the issue, supporting federal access to abortion. Collins is currently in a tight reelection race where abortion access remains a central issue.
However, Collins focused her questions Thursday on a different topic: recent FDA decisions allowing new flavored e-cigarettes onto the market. Under previous administrations, including Trump’s first term, the agency had restricted sweet vaping flavors due to their appeal to minors.
Overton noted that the approval of several fruit-flavored vapes was supported by FDA scientists, who determined the products met the standard of “appropriate for the protection of public health” by helping adult smokers quit cigarettes.
“They believed that standard was met because so many adult smokers are using flavors preferentially,” Overton said.
To be confirmed as commissioner, Overton will require a majority vote from the 21-member health committee, followed by a positive vote from the full Senate.
Under the current administration, leading the agency has required balancing Trump’s demands for slashing regulations—such as those for vaping products—alongside Kennedy’s interests in scrutinizing vaccines, drugs, and food ingredients.
Previous FDA Head Faced Numerous Challenges Before Quitting
These challenges plagued the tenure of the previous FDA head, Marty Makary, MD, MPH, who resigned in May. Makary’s time at the agency was marked by scientific disputes, leadership changes, and a series of media reports detailing low morale and internal dysfunction among staff. The FDA has lost approximately 20% of its employees to layoffs, buyouts, retirements, or resignations since Trump took office.
Overton studied under Makary at Johns Hopkins University, where she earned a doctoral degree in clinical research after obtaining her medical degree at the University of New Mexico.
Like Makary, Overton lacks experience managing a large bureaucracy, a critical skill for leading the FDA’s 16,000 employees stationed across numerous U.S. and international locations.
In financial disclosure forms, Overton reported no investments in healthcare or food companies. This is a stark contrast to Makary and other recent FDA nominees, who have had to divest investments or sever financial ties with companies regulated by the agency.
Overton reported holding between $50,000 and $100,000 in student loans.
