President-elect Trump has decided on the top three positions in the health field for the next administration. Chris Unger/Getty Images Hide caption
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In a series of high-profile announcements Friday night, President-elect Trump made his picks for the top three health jobs in his new administration.
Johns Hopkins University surgeon Marty McCurry has been selected to head the Food and Drug Administration. He wants former Florida Republican Rep. Dave Weldon to head the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. FOX News contributor Dr. Janet Neshewat is considered to be the next Surgeon General.
Trump made all three announcements on Truth Social and in press releases. These selections will help the next president re-prioritize the agency that is the cornerstone of public health. But the choice also comes with controversy.
Dr. Marty McQuarrie as FDA Commissioner
Dr. Marty McCurry, 2018. Noam Garay/Getty Images for HBO/Getty Images Hide Caption
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The selection of McCurry, a Johns Hopkins University surgical oncologist, for the FDA’s top job was unexpected given his work in the first Trump administration on issues such as surprise medical billing. isn’t it. He has also recently expressed support for Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Mr. Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, and Mr. Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” platform.
Earlier this year, Mr. McCulley appeared with Mr. Kennedy at a Congressional Roundtable on Health and Nutrition, criticizing federal health agencies for not prioritizing chronic diseases and saying, “The biggest perpetrators of misinformation are the food pyramid. It’s the U.S. government.”
“We have the most overmedicated and sickest population in the world, and no one is talking about the root causes,” he said. “We have poisoned the food supply.”
In the announcement, President Trump said that McCulley will work with Kennedy to “adequately assess and eliminate the harmful chemicals that contaminate our nation’s food supply and the drugs and biologicals that are being administered to our nation’s young people.” “We can tackle the epidemic of chronic childhood diseases in an effective manner.”
McCurry, who frequently appears on Fox News, has written several books on health care, is a member of the National Academy of Medicine, and holds a master’s degree in public health from Harvard University. He gained attention for his writing and research on topics such as high medical costs, medical errors, and the need for greater transparency in health care, among other topics.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, he has been a vocal critic of various aspects of public health measures, particularly vaccine mandates and what he called “a complete dismissal of natural immunity.” It also emerged as
He expressed support for lockdowns early in the pandemic and encouraged universal mask-wearing. But in the years since, he has become increasingly outspoken in his opposition to certain coronavirus-related decisions by federal health agencies. He called the Biden administration’s CDC “the most political CDC in history.”
Dr. Dave Weldon appointed as CDC Director
Dave Weldon while serving in Congress in 2005. Joe Radle/Getty Images Hide Caption
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Weldon, who was nominated by President Trump to serve as CDC commissioner, is a physician, military veteran, and Republican who served in the House of Representatives from 1995 to 2009.
In Weldon’s announcement, President Trump said, “The American people have lost confidence in the CDC and federal health authorities, which have engaged in censorship, data manipulation, and misinformation. Given the current chronic health crisis in our country. “The CDC must step up its efforts.” Correct past mistakes and focus on disease prevention. ”
Weldon will be the first nominee for CDC director, as legislation passed in 2022 requires Senate confirmation.
“He is a well-trained internist and practicing medicine,” said Dr. George Benjamin, president of the American Public Health Association. “He (doesn’t seem) to have any traditional public health training, but we’ll know more once he passes Senate confirmation.”
As a congressman from Florida, Mr. Weldon “worked with the CDC to enact anti-patenting laws on human embryos,” Mr. Trump said in a post on Truth Social. Mr. Weldon also introduced protections for health care providers and organizations that do not provide or support abortions. The provision, known as the Weldon Amendment, has been attached to HHS spending bills introduced in Congress every year since 2005.
The Weldon Amendment and related policies apply to public funds. But according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights, the agency also “encourages health plans, medical institutions, and health care providers to deny abortion services or coverage. … often in the name of protecting “freedom of conscience” and “religious freedom.” ”’
Trump said Weldon will “take pride in restoring the CDC to its true purpose and work to end the chronic disease epidemic” and will “prioritize transparency, competency, and high standards.” .
Dr. Janet Neshewat appointed Surgeon General
Dr. Janet Neshewat attends the 2023 FOX Nation Patriot Awards at the Grand Ole Opry on November 16, 2023 in Nashville, Tennessee. Terry Wyatt/Getty Images Hide Caption
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Like several of Trump’s Cabinet picks, Trump’s new Surgeon General has experience at Fox News.
Ms. Neshewat is a medical contributor to the Network and the author of “Beyond the Stethoscope: A Medical Miracle,” which tells of her experiences during and after the pandemic, and her website describes her work as “A Vibrant Christian.” It has been described as “a memoir.” She is also the medical director of CityMD, a network of emergency centers in New York and New Jersey. We use that experience to sell our own vitamin supplements.
President Trump praised Neshewat’s work on “the front lines in New York City” during the pandemic and after natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and the Joplin tornado.
In appearances on Fox News, she has emphasized the benefits of vaccination against COVID-19 and other infectious diseases.
“She is committed to ensuring Americans have access to affordable, high-quality health care and empowering individuals to help them live longer, healthier lives,” President Trump said in a statement. “We believe in empowering people to take control of their health.”
Jane Greenhalgh, Scott Hensley, Pien Huang and Diane Webber contributed to this report.
