FDA Nominee Heidi Overton Faces Senate Questions on Vaccines and Abortion Pill

Dr. Heidi Overton, President Donald Trump's nominee to lead the Food and Drug Administration, is set to face questions from the Senate health committee on Thursday, with lawmakers expected to press her on vaccines, the abortion pill and other products that have drawn fresh scrutiny at the agency.

Overton, a physician and senior White House domestic policy adviser, has built most of her career in Trump's orbit or in conservative groups aligned with his agenda — a background likely to draw questions from committee members weighing her nomination.

In her current role, she has worked on several White House health initiatives, including the revamped food pyramid and efforts to overhaul childhood vaccines. She previously served as an executive at the America First Policy Institute, where she wrote papers critical of abortion and transgender care, and was a White House fellow during Trump's first term.

If confirmed, Overton would inherit several contentious projects: a safety review of the nation's principal abortion drug, a plan to break up combination vaccines, and new rules easing the sale of flavored electronic cigarettes. All three depart from the FDA's longstanding positions, particularly on the safety of childhood vaccines. Overton stood alongside Trump and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy in the Oval Office last month when they falsely suggested combination vaccines could contribute to autism.

Health committee chairman Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana physician, has called Overton's support for spacing out vaccinations "almost disqualifying." Yet Cassidy and other Senate Republicans may find common ground with her on abortion: Cassidy and several colleagues have spent months urging the FDA to restrict access to mifepristone, the pill used in most U.S. abortions.

The FDA approved mifepristone in 2000 and has repeatedly affirmed its safety while broadening access, including allowing mail delivery. Kennedy ordered a reevaluation of the drug's safety last year after calls from anti-abortion groups and Trump-aligned lawmakers. FDA officials have said little about the review beyond confirming it is ongoing.

While at the America First Policy Institute, Overton criticized the FDA's 2023 decision under President Joe Biden to permit mail delivery of mifepristone, calling the practice "chemical abortion on demand." She was similarly critical of the administration's approach to transgender care for children, including access to puberty-blocking drugs and gender-affirming surgeries. She co-authored a 2024 article about then-vice presidential candidate Tim Walz titled: "Tim Walz Made Minnesota A 'Sanctuary' For Baby Killers And Child Mutilators."

Her abortion views could complicate efforts to win over two moderate Republicans on the panel: Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski. Both have broken with their party on the issue by supporting federal access to abortion. Collins is currently locked in a tight reelection race where abortion access is a central issue.

To become commissioner, Overton needs a majority of votes from the 21-member health committee, followed by a favorable vote in the full Senate.

Headquartered outside Washington, the FDA oversees U.S. medical products along with billions of dollars in food, cosmetics, tobacco and vaping products. Leading the agency under the current administration has meant balancing Trump's push to slash regulations — including those for vaping products — against Kennedy's interest in scrutinizing vaccines, drugs and food ingredients.

Those tensions shadowed the tenure of the previous FDA head, Dr. Marty Makary, who resigned in May. His time at the agency was marked by scientific disputes, leadership changes and media reports of low morale and internal dysfunction. The FDA has lost about 20% of its employees to layoffs, buyouts, retirements or resignations since Trump took office.

Overton studied under Makary at Johns Hopkins University, where she earned a doctoral degree in clinical research after receiving her medical degree at the University of New Mexico. Like Makary, she has no experience running a large bureaucracy — a critical skill for steering the FDA's 16,000 staffers across numerous U.S. and international locations.

In financial disclosure forms, Overton reported no investments in health care or food companies, a stark contrast to Makary and other recent FDA nominees who had to divest holdings or cut financial ties with companies regulated by the agency. She reported $50,000 to $100,000 in student loans.