Trump taps White House aide Heidi Overton who pushed back on his health agenda as FDA chief

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump has chosen White House health-policy aide Heidi Overton to lead the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), after a turbulent year at the agency marked by high-profile staff exits and industry complaints, according to a report by the Bloomberg.

The decision would elevate one of the administration's key health-policy officials to an agency facing pressure to restore stability after the resignation of former FDA Commissioner Marty Makary in May. Overton emerged from a crowded field of potential candidates and has gained significant support within the White House.

Who is Heidi Overton, Trump's FDA pick?

Overton, 37, is a physician and currently serves as deputy director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, where she has played a central role in developing and coordinating the administration's health policies.

She began working for Trump in 2019 while completing a surgical residency at Johns Hopkins University and later earned a doctorate in clinical investigation. After Trump's first term, Overton joined the conservative America First Policy Institute, where she worked alongside Brooke Rollins, who is now agriculture secretary.

Overton returned to the White House under Trump's second administration and became closely involved in health-policy decisions spanning the White House and other federal agencies. She also helped Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F Kennedy Jr assemble his HHS team and has worked on several initiatives associated with the administration's Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) agenda.

The White House has considered several candidates for the FDA post, including cancer physician Jeff Vacirca and senior Pentagon health official Stephen Ferrara. Overton has, however, gained support from senior administration officials as well, including chief of staff Susie Wiles.

Heidi Overton backed Trump's MAHA agenda

Overton has been involved in some of the administration's most prominent health initiatives, including efforts to overhaul federal nutrition guidelines, revise childhood-vaccine recommendations and promote policies aimed at addressing chronic disease.

She also helped write the first MAHA executive order, which shifted the administration's health priorities toward chronic disease, life expectancy and what Trump officials described as reducing over-reliance on medication.

Overton was also involved in the administration's push on regenerative agriculture and worked on the executive order concerning psychedelic therapies. Her supporters have defended her role as an effort to ensure that major policy changes are legally durable and supported by scientific evidence.

Heidi Overton pushed back on some of Trump's health policies

Despite her support for the broader MAHA agenda, Overton has also clashed with some of its advocates over how quickly and how far the administration should pursue certain policies.

During the development of Trump's executive order on psychedelic therapies, Overton oversaw a White House review that resulted in significant changes to an HHS draft. Some MAHA advocates accused her of weakening the proposal and objected to her role in the process, according to a report by the Atlantic.

She has similarly faced criticism over marijuana rescheduling, nutrition policy and proposals involving peptides, with some MAHA supporters arguing that she has slowed or limited changes they wanted the administration to make.