President Donald Trump moved swiftly to name a new nominee for U.S. surgeon general after abruptly withdrawing his previous pick.
The president announced that Dr. Nicole B. Saphier would be his new choice to fill the role recently vacated by Dr. Casey Means, a shift that underscores both the political and medical stakes surrounding federal health leadership, according to the Daily Caller. As reported by the Daily Caller, Trumps selection of Saphier described by him as a star physician came shortly after he formally ended Means bid, promising instead to deploy her in other capacities to advance his Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) agenda.
Trump highlighted Saphiers record treating women with breast cancer and her advocacy for early detection and prevention, stressing her experience across a range of cancer diagnoses and treatments. In a Truth Social post, he praised her as a star physician who has guided women through breast cancer, advocated for early cancer detection and prevention, and worked on other forms of cancer diagnoses and treatments.
Saphier currently serves as a radiologist and director of breast imaging at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Monmouth, giving her a frontline perspective on one of the nations most feared diseases. She also hosts a health and wellness podcast, Wellness Unmasked, and previously authored the book Make America Healthy Again: How Bad Behavior and Big Government Caused a Trillion-Dollar Crisis, a title that aligns closely with Trumps critique of bureaucratic overreach in health care.
Trump emphasized not only her medical credentials but also her ability to communicate clearly with the public, a skill often lacking in federal health messaging during recent crises. She is also an incredible communicator who makes complicated health issues more easily understood by all Americans, Trump said, adding that she will help make America healthy again.
Saphier has not shied away from challenging federal health authorities, particularly the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), when she believes they overstep or disregard parental rights. In 2022, she claimed the CDC would mandate coronavirus vaccines for schoolchildren, and in 2025 she urged the CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics to allow parents to delay the MMR vaccine so they could have that conversation and let them wait until their childs a little bit older.
Her more conventional stance on most vaccines, however, may make her more acceptable to lawmakers than Means, whose views on immunization drew bipartisan skepticism. Means vaccine positions were cited as a key reason she failed to gain support from either party, a rare point of agreement in an otherwise polarized Senate.
Trumps announcement of Saphiers nomination came less than 30 minutes after he revealed that Means nomination would be withdrawn, despite her having been the preferred choice of Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. He said Means would instead find different ways to promote the MAHA agenda, signaling that her influence in conservative health policy circles is far from over.
The president publicly thanked Means for her work and framed her future role as central to his broader health reform vision. Trump said that Casey will continue to fight for MAHA on the many important health issues facing our country, such as the rising childhood disease epidemic, increased autism rates, poor nutrition, over-medicalization, and researching the root causes of infertility, and many other difficult medical problems.
Trump placed the blame for Means failed confirmation squarely on Republican Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, accusing him of sabotaging the nomination for political reasons. He denounced what he called the intransigence and political games of Cassidy, a physician and chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Despite RFK Jr.s backing, Means never secured the votes needed to be confirmed, as her nomination stalled repeatedly in the Senate. Her confirmation hearing was postponed in late 2025, and when it was finally held earlier this year, she still could not muster sufficient support to advance.
Trump reminded supporters that Cassidy had previously benefited from his endorsement, only to turn on him later in Washington. He described Cassidy as a very disloyal person who had voted to impeach Trump despite having relied on Trumps backing to win office.
Means herself had been a replacement nominee, tapped last May after Trump moved on from an earlier pick, Dr. Janette Nesheiwat, for the same post. At that time, Trump said Means had impeccable MAHA credentials and intended for her to work closely with Kennedy to combat chronic disease and strengthen the nations long-term health.
With Saphier now stepping into the spotlight, conservatives are likely to see a nominee whose skepticism of heavy-handed public health mandates and criticism of Big Government in medicine align more closely with their priorities, while still offering mainstream medical expertise. The White House did not respond to the Daily Callers request for comment.
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