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Senators to Question FDA Nominee About Her Views on Abortion Pill and Vaccines
She offered guarded support for vaccines and declined to say whether she would oppose presidential orders that conflict with public health.
On Thursday, President Donald Trump's FDA nominee Dr. Heidi Overton faces a Senate confirmation hearing, with lawmakers expected to press her on plans for vaccines and the abortion pill mifepristone.
Overton, a former America First Policy Institute executive, is a proponent of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s "Make America Healthy Again" movement, signaling alignment with the administration's medical priorities.
Senator Bill Cassidy has questioned her suitability to manage the FDA's 16,000 staffers, citing her lack of experience running a large bureaucracy and arguing the nomination prioritizes political opinions over qualifications.
To secure the nomination, Overton needs a majority vote from the 21-member Senate Health Committee; Republicans continue pressuring the FDA to restrict access to mifepristone, the abortion pill used in most U.S. abortions.
Overton inherits an agency that has lost about 20% of its employees since President Trump took office; she plans to emphasize "go fast" on clinical trials to compete with China's biotechnology industry.
Daily News, Society, Culture and Business podcast featuring Erica Mandy.
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Daily News, Society, Culture and Business podcast featuring Erica Mandy.
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The NewsWorthy discuss Heidi Overton’s FDA confirmation hearing, where she affirmed vaccine and mifepristone safety while sidestepping whether she’d challenge Trump