President Donald Trump has chosen White House policy aide Heidi Overton to lead the Food and Drug Administration, a source familiar with the matter said on Tuesday (August 18, 2026), months after previous chief Marty Makary quit. U.S.
Trump announced an executive order that calls for reducing the childhood vaccine schedule and splitting the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine into three separate shots, which could take drug developers years to achieve. Trump to nominate as FDA commissioner, Reuters reported earlier. Last week, Ms. Overton appeared at a White House event where Mr. Ms. Overton was among three candidates, including oncologist Jeffrey Vacirca and Pentagon health official Stephen Ferrara, the administration focused on for Mr.
Ms.
Overton, a doctor by training, is currently deputy director of the White House domestic policy council and has previously worked at the America First Policy Institute, a conservative think tank.
