A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
President Trump's pick for surgeon general made her case in front of a Senate committee on Wednesday. Dr. Casey Means is a wellness influencer, entrepreneur and author. She is closely aligned with Secretary of Health Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his Make America Healthy Again agenda. But her nomination has faced plenty of pushback, including from the medical establishment. NPR health correspondent Will Stone covered the hearing. So, Will, first of all, it's been more than a year in the Trump administration. Why's it taken it this long to get a surgeon general in place?
WILL STONE, BYLINE: That's right. There have been a few hiccups throughout the process. Casey Means was actually not Trump's first pick. He initially selected a doctor and Fox News contributor, though she ended up withdrawing her nomination. Trump then tapped Means for the job. She's gained prominence in the wellness space, mostly through a book she published about chronic diseases and diet. And she was all set for the Senate hearing back in October, but it was canceled at the last second because she was pregnant and had gone into labor.
MARTÍNEZ: OK. So she had a lot going on. What did we hear today from Means during the hearing?
STONE: In many ways, very similar messaging as Secretary Kennedy and his MAHA supporters. Mean (ph) talks about chronic diseases, diet and lifestyle, the harms of ultra-processed foods and toxins and the failures of the medical system. Take a listen to what she said during her opening statement.
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CASEY MEANS: I believe that every American shares a core yearning to thrive and help their families thrive. But we are asking people to make healthy choices in environments that are squarely structured against them.
MARTÍNEZ: All right. So that sounds pretty reasonable. How was she received?
STONE: Well, unsurprisingly, she got tough questions from Democrats and mostly praise from Republicans, though not entirely. And that's because there are questions about where she stands on some of the most controversial causes taken up by Kennedy - most of all, vaccines. And Means has previously raised concerns about the safety of the childhood vaccine schedule. And Senator Bill Cassidy, a Republican and doctor who chairs the committee, pressed Means on her views. Here he is asking about the disproven claims that vaccines cause autism.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
BILL CASSIDY: Been a lot of evidence showing that they're not implicated. Do you not accept that evidence?
MEANS: I do accept that evidence. I also think that science is never settled.
STONE: And I'd say, A, this exchange is emblematic of how Means navigated many of the questions from senators. She would say she believes in vaccines. At the same time, when pressed, she would not directly say that she actually encourages mothers to vaccinate their kids for measles or for people to get the flu shot. In the past, Means has also questioned the use of birth control pills and their safety. Here, too, she was pressed by Cassidy and Democrats. She said that oral contraceptives should be widely available, but that they do have significant risks that women need to know about.
MARTÍNEZ: All right. Now, you know, the surgeon general's considered the nation's top doctor. What's the deal with her qualifications?
STONE: Yeah, this is another sticking point. Means did graduate from Stanford medical school, but she dropped out of her surgical training before finishing. She does not have an active medical license. She's an influencer, and she runs a company that sells glucose monitoring devices. So she doesn't have the clinical or leadership experience typical of a surgeon general, which is one reason for the opposition to her nomination.
MARTÍNEZ: All right. That's NPR health correspondent Will Stone. Will, thanks.
STONE: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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