FDA nominee voices support for vaccines at Senate hearing scrutinizing Trump administration efforts

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Food and Drug Administration voiced support for the safety of long-established vaccines at a hearing Thursday, even as senators questioned her about the White House's efforts to upend childhood immunizations.Dr. Heidi Overton is currently serving as a White House adviser and has worked on a series of Trump health initiatives, including an executive order last month that called for splitting up and spacing out decades-old childhood vaccinations. Overton, a physician, stood beside Trump in the Oval Office when he falsely remarked that the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine could be “quite lethal.”Senate Health Committee Chairman Sen.

Bill Cassidy, a physician from Louisiana, pushed Overton to reject that statement and affirm the safety of FDA-approved vaccines.“Right now every vaccine that is on the market has been determined to be safe and effective,” including the MMR vaccine, Overton said.Cassidy has repeatedly tried to extract commitments from Trump health nominees to uphold vaccine standards, including from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., only to see the Republican administration push forward with efforts undermining their use.“Kennedy gave me guarantees, and he did not keep them," said Cassidy, a Republican. “If the president asks you to do something that goes against those guarantees you give us today, what will you do?”Overton said she would “follow the statutory requirements” for FDA commissioners and give Trump her best advice.

Later in the hearing, Overton declined to explicitly say that Trump was wrong about the MMR vaccine's safety.“This committee needs to know whether you will be radically honest, whether you will use your authority to stand up for sound science and protect children’s health,” Cassidy said. He didn’t indicate whether he’d support Overton’s nomination or when he might schedule a committee vote on it.If confirmed, Overton would inherit a raft of other controversial projects at the agency, including a safety review of the nation’s principal abortion drug and new rules that make it easier to sell flavored electronic cigarettes. Both issues were a focus for Republicans and Democrats on the panel.Overton sidesteps past statements on abortion pillThe FDA approved the abortion pill mifepristone in 2000 and has repeatedly affirmed its safety while broadening acc…

Heidi Overton, a physician currently serving as a White House adviser, has worked on a series of Trump health initiatives, including an executive order last month that called for splitting up and spacing out decades-old childhood vaccinations. Overton stood beside Trump in the Oval Office when he falsely remarked that the combined measles, mumps and rubella, or MMR, vaccine is “quite lethal.”Senate Health Committee Chairman Sen. Both issues were a focus for Republicans and Democrats on the panel, who will vote on Overton's nomination.Overton sidesteps past statements on abortion pillThe FDA approved the abortion pill mifepristone in 2000 and has repeatedly affirmed its safety while broadening access, including allowing it to be sent through the mail.

But Kennedy ordered an FDA review of the drug’s safety last year, following calls from anti-abortion groups and lawmakers favoring abortion restrictions.While working at the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute, Overton called the FDA decision to allow mail delivery of mifepristone “dan…