Dr. Heidi Overton, a White House domestic policy aide, has been selected to lead the FDA, President Trump announced today.
Overton received her medical degree from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, before attending Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. Prior to joining Trump's second administration, she was the chief policy officer at the America First Policy Institute, a conservative think tank.
Overton has been an outspoken critic of abortion pills, a proponent of the Make America Healthy Again movement, and a supporter of Trump’s recent vaccine order seeking to separate the combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine into three individual immunizations.
If confirmed by the Senate, Overton would replace former FDA chief Marty Makary, who resigned in May under pressure from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Makary had clashed with MAHA supporters after the FDA approved updated mRNA COVID vaccines, and again with anti-abortion advocates when the agency approved a second generic version of mifepristone.
Subscribe to our e-Newsletters
Stay up to date with news, articles and insights relevant to cell and gene therapy development and manufacturing. Plus, get special offers from Cell & Gene Therapy Review delivered right to your inbox!
Sign up now!