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President Trump has nominated Dr. Heidi Overton to be the new commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration. She faced questions from a Senate committee today as part of the confirmation process. NPR's pharmaceuticals correspondent Sydney Lupkin reports.
SYDNEY LUPKIN, BYLINE: Overton was questioned by senators for around two hours. Senators asked her about abortion pill access and safety, vaccines, autism and recent foodborne illness outbreaks. She was also grilled on whether she would be able to stand up to the president if she needed to.
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MAGGIE HASSAN: Is it possible for him to be wrong?
HEIDI OVERTON: Senator, it is the president who sets the policy directions, but he works with all of his advisers to get the best information. My experience has been he wants to make the best decision...
HASSAN: OK.
OVERTON: ...In the best interest of Americans.
HASSAN: I appreciate this. I have limited time, so I'm going to stop you there.
LUPKIN: That was the third time Senator Maggie Hassan, a Democrat from New Hampshire, asked Overton a version of this question. Several senators also brought up a recent press conference in the Oval Office during which Overton stood behind the president when he, without evidence, called the MMR vaccine potentially quite lethal. Here's Overton's exchange with Senator Bill Cassidy, a Republican from Louisiana.
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OVERTON: Is the MMR vaccine lethal, is your question. I have - the MMR vaccine is not lethal. It has been determined...
BILL CASSIDY: Is it safe and effective?
OVERTON: Yes, Senator, the MMR vaccine is safe and effective.
CASSIDY: Do you - so you disagree with the president on that?
LUPKIN: Again, Overton didn't answer directly. She affirmed her duty as FDA commissioner to uphold the laws and regulations for determining safety and efficacy of regulated products. And she said the MMR vaccine was the best public health tool to fight the ongoing measles outbreak. On abortion access, a 2023 paper Overton wrote during her time at the conservative America First Policy Institute came up several times. In it, she called mifepristone dangerous. Asked if she still believes that, Overton spoke carefully. She said that, according to the FDA, it was safe and effective. Pressed further, she said she couldn't prejudge whether the drug's label should be changed, however, because the agency is doing another safety review. That review was first announced a year ago. Overton said it is ongoing. Sydney Lupkin, NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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