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Overton tapped for FDA
President Donald Trump has decided to nominate White House aide Heidi Overton to lead the Food and Drug Administration, according to a senior administration official cited by Axios.
“President Trump has decided to nominate White House aide Heidi Overton to lead the Food and Drug Administration”
Axios said Overton, currently deputy director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, was one of several candidates the White House had been considering for weeks.
Axios also tied the decision to turmoil at the FDA after the exit of former commissioner Marty Makary earlier this year, which it said threatened the stability of U.S. drug development.
POLITICO reported that Trump will nominate Overton to be the next commissioner of the FDA, citing two people familiar with the pick who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
POLITICO added that Kyle Diamantas is currently leading the agency in an acting capacity.
Reactions and confirmation
Axios quoted Raymond James analyst and former Trump health official Chris Meekins saying, "Overton has degrees but seemingly no real experience running anything."
In the same Axios report, Paragon Health Institute president Brian Blase called Overton a "great choice" and wrote on X that "Heidi has the highest character and is dedicated to improving American well-being and helping American patients get the best possible care,".
Axios said Overton appeared at last week's signing of an executive order calling for an overhaul of the childhood vaccine schedule, including slimming down the number of federally recommended shots and splitting up the MMR vaccine into three different shots.
Axios also said the nomination could face resistance from senators who will have to vote on her nomination, and it specifically pointed to outgoing Senate health committee chair Bill Cassidy (R-La.) calling the executive order "wrong."
POLITICO reported that Overton will need Senate confirmation before she can assume the role.
Agency leadership stakes
Axios said the FDA was left in turmoil after the exit of former commissioner Marty Makary earlier this year, threatening the stability of U.S. drug development.
“threatening the stability of U.S. drug development”
POLITICO said the decision to elevate Overton maintains a decadeslong tradition of appointing a medical doctor to the role, and it described Overton as board-certified in public health and general preventive medicine.
POLITICO also reported that Overton was a fellow in the first Trump White House from 2019 to 2020 at the Office of American Innovation and the Domestic Policy Council.
POLITICO added that Overton crossed paths with former FDA Commissioner Marty Makary at Johns Hopkins, where they co-wrote a Makary led the agency from March 2025 till his ouster in May.
Axios said acting commissioner Kyle Diamantas has taken big steps toward repairing the agency's relationship with industry, even as it framed Overton as a potential reversal point if she is confirmed.
