Trump Names Picks for Top Jobs at FDA and CDC and Also Surgeon General

President-Elect Donald Trump named his picks for FDA administrator, CDC director and Surgeon General late Friday evening, leaving only the directorship of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as the only unfilled slot among six most prominent healthcare jobs in the federal government. Several news outlets have identified Jay Bhattacharya, M.D.,Ph.D., a Stanford University professor, as Trump’s likely pick for NIH director.

Marty Makary, M.D., M.P.H.

The selection of Marty Makary, M.D., M.P.H., could be Trump’s least controversial healthcare pick so far. Makary is a surgeon at Johns Hopkins, a member of the National Academy of Medicine and a prolific writer of both journal articles and books on healthcare for the general public.

Stat quoted Jerome Adams, the surgeon general in the first Trump administration, as saying, “I think Marty Makary is a reasonable pick to lead the FDA and perhaps the least surprising or controversial of Trump’s health picks so far”

Trump’s pick for CDC director is Dave Weldon, M.D., an internist who served seven terms in Congress representing the so-called Space Coast district along central Florida Atlantic Coast. Weldon has said he got into politics because of his pro-life views and the eponymous Weldon Administration bars HHS funding from going to programs that discriminate against healthcare insurers or providers who refuseto pay for or provide abortions.

According to the Washington Post, Weldon was one of the few members of Congress to give credence to the theory that vaccines cause autism, and he pushed to have thimerosal removed from flu shots.

Janette Nesheiwat, M.D., the pick for Surgeon General, is a Fox News medical contributor and has appeared on other television shows. Her book, “Beyond the Stethoscope: Miracles in Medicine,” is described on her website as a “vivid Christain memoir” that follows a young doctor from a humble immigrant family. Nesheiwat sells a vitamin and mineral supplement, B+C Boost containing vitamins C, B12, and D3 and zinc on her website that is marketed as strengthening the immune system. Her picture is on the bottle.

The Friday night announcement of the Makary, Weldon and Nesheiwat selections came after Trump announced on Nov. 19 that he wanted Mehmet Oz, M.D., the famous television show doctors and 2022 Republican Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, to serve as CMS administrator and after the Nov. 14 announcement that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was his pick for HHS secretary.

HHS is the umbrella agency for the FDA, CDC, FDA, the Office of the Surgeon General and NIH.Unless there are maneuvers to use recess appointments to bypass the Senate, all six positions require confirmation by the Senate by a simple majority vote. The Republicans are expected to have 53-47 majority in next year’s Congress.

Because of his views questioning the proof for vaccine safety and efficacy, Kennedy has been most the controversial of Trump’s healthcare. Weldon will also come under scrutiny because of his positions on vaccines and autism. The CDC doesn’t have much authority over issues affecting abortion services and rights, but his strong pro-life positions may also stir up opposition. Oz’s immensely popular “The Dr. Oz Show” focused mainly on personal health issues, but he talked up Medicare Advantage on his show and the Better Medicare Alliance, a Medicare Advantage trade group, issued a positive statement after his selection became public.