Trump Nominates Heidi Overton as Next FDA Commissioner
The White House aide and physician, who has advised Trump on drug pricing and vaccine policy, would replace Marty Makary if confirmed by the Senate.
President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he has nominated Dr. Heidi Overton, deputy director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, to serve as the next commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration.
"Dr. Heidi has been a ROCKSTAR in my Administration, where she has worked directly with Secretary Kennedy, Dr. Oz, and team, to deliver on the MOST TRANSFORMATIVE Health Agenda in History," Trump wrote on social media, saying he wants her leadership at the FDA to keep the United States "the WORLD LEADER for Scientific Discovery and CURES."
Overton has served as Trump's deputy assistant during his second term, advising him on health policy including efforts to lower prescription drug prices. She has appeared alongside Trump at major health announcements, including his recent executive order on childhood vaccines. At that signing, Overton voiced support for reducing the childhood immunization schedule and restoring vaccination decisions to parents, while touting what she called "gold-standard science." She has also espoused anti-abortion views.
Overton holds a doctorate from Johns Hopkins University. Before joining the White House, she was vice chair and chief policy officer at the America First Policy Institute's Center for a Healthy America, a nonprofit previously led by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. Several other Trump administration officials, including Education Secretary Linda McMahon, also held positions there.
The FDA, part of the Department of Health and Human Services under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has lacked permanent leadership amid recent cyclospora and salmonella outbreaks. Overton's nomination requires Senate confirmation, where she is expected to face questions testing her independence from the administration.
"She's gonna stay in line because she's tested," a source familiar with the decision told ABC News. "She's a loyalist to the president. That's kind of his thinking behind all of this -- to keep loyalists in these top jobs."
A senior administration official said acting commissioner Kyle Diamantas, who has led the outbreak investigations, was offered the permanent job several times but declined. Overton would replace former Commissioner Marty Makary, who resigned in May amid clashes with the White House over pressure to authorize fruit-flavored vapes.
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