Who is Heidi Overton? Trump nominates aide for top FDA job

If confirmed by the Senate, Overton would replace former FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, who resigned in May after clashing with the White House over the safety of flavored vapes.

Trump described Overton as a key figure in his administration, saying she has worked closely with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dr. Mehmet Oz on his health agenda. He said she would help advance priorities including faster drug approvals, clinical trial reforms, lower drug prices and increased US innovation.

Who is Heidi Overton?

Overton is currently deputy director of the White House Domestic Policy Council. She has worked on several of Trump's second-term health initiatives and has become a trusted administration figure.

She previously served as chief policy officer and vice chair of the Center for a Healthy America at the conservative America First Policy Institute. She also served as a White House Fellow in 2019-2020, working in the Office of American Innovation and the Domestic Policy Council.

Overton holds both a medical degree and a PhD. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of New Mexico's Combined BA/MD Program, received her medical degree from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine and earned a PhD in Clinical Investigation from the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health.

She is board-certified in Public Health and General Preventive Medicine. Earlier in her career, she was a general surgery resident at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and worked as a physician advocate for healthcare price and quality transparency.

Her views on health policy

Overton is closely aligned with the Make America Healthy Again movement and Trump's health policy agenda.

She has criticized abortion, previously describing it as "corrosive" to women, and has called for the FDA to take action against medicated abortion.

Earlier this month, Overton spoke at an Oval Office event on reducing the number of vaccinations required for children. She criticized Democratic-controlled states and urged them to follow the administration's new policy.

As FDA commissioner, she would oversee an agency responsible for ensuring the safety and effectiveness of prescription drugs and regulating tobacco products.

Trump said Overton is "known to take on the HARDEST issues" and expressed confidence that she would help make the US a leader in scientific discovery and medical cures.

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Trump launched an 'unprecedented economic warfare' against Iran.