Trump Nominates Casey Means for Surgeon General After Nesheiwat Withdrawal

President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he has nominated Dr. Casey Means, a wellness influencer and advocate for the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) agenda, as U.S. Surgeon General, replacing his initial nominee, Dr. Janette Nesheiwat. The nomination follows Nesheiwat’s withdrawal amid scrutiny over her medical credentials and criticism from Trump allies.

Trump announced the decision on Truth Social, stating Means has “impeccable ‘MAHA’ credentials” and “the potential to be one of the finest Surgeon Generals in United States History.” He said Means will collaborate with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to “reverse the Chronic Disease Epidemic” and promote “Great Health” for Americans. The surgeon general, known as “the nation’s doctor,” oversees the U.S. Public Health Service Corps and issues advisories on public health threats.

Dr. Casey Means, 37, earned a medical degree from Stanford University in 2014 and trained as an otolaryngologist but left her surgical residency at Oregon Health & Science University in 2018 before completing it. She shifted to functional medicine, focusing on metabolic health to address chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, and infertility. Means co-founded Levels, a health tech company offering glucose monitoring subscriptions, which raised nearly $100 million in venture capital from 2021 to 2024, according to STAT News. In 2024, she co-authored the best-selling book Good Energy: The Surprising Connection Between Metabolism and Limitless Health with her brother, Calley Means, a White House health adviser and former food industry lobbyist.

Means has gained attention through appearances on conservative platforms, including Tucker Carlson’s show and Joe Rogan’s podcast, where she criticized the food and pharmaceutical industries. “Chronic illnesses are driven by our toxic food system and our toxic environment,” she said on Carlson’s podcast, as reported by the BBC. At a September 2024 Senate roundtable, she stated, “American health is getting destroyed,” attributing conditions like depression and Alzheimer’s to processed foods, according to The New York Times. Means has also expressed vaccine skepticism, writing in an October 2024 newsletter that the “current extreme and growing vaccine schedule is causing health declines in vulnerable children” and calling for reduced liability protections for vaccine manufacturers.

Nesheiwat’s withdrawal came after questions about her medical credentials surfaced. Freelance journalist Anthony Clark reported that Nesheiwat claimed a medical degree from the University of Arkansas School of Medicine, but she graduated from the American University of the Caribbean in St. Maarten. The University of Arkansas confirmed she completed a residency there but did not earn a degree. Laura Loomer, a Trump ally, criticized Nesheiwat’s “pro-COVID vaccine” stance and credential misrepresentation, calling her unsuitable for the role, as noted in The Guardian. Nesheiwat, the sister-in-law of Mike Waltz, Trump’s nominee for UN ambassador, will take another unspecified health department role, Trump said.

The MAHA agenda, supported by Kennedy and Means, seeks to reform food systems, remove additives, and address chronic disease through policies like healthier school lunches and warning labels on ultra-processed foods. Means and her brother, who advised Kennedy’s 2024 presidential campaign, have described food conglomerates and pharmaceutical companies as creating a “dizzying web of influences” that keep Americans reliant on medications, as reported by The Guardian. However, Gabby Headrick, a nutrition researcher at George Washington University, told The Guardian that labeling all processed foods as harmful is “overly simplistic,” noting they include products like granola and potato chips.

Jessica Hockett, a researcher with a PhD in educational psychology from the University of Virginia, provided her perspective on the nomination in an interview with The Lancaster Patriot. “The nomination of influencer Casey Means as U.S. Surgeon General exposes just how hollow and performative this taxpayer-funded role has become,” Hockett said. Having studied COVID-19 policies since 2020, she argued that the surgeon general position and many federal public health roles are “superfluous and unserious.” She stated, “I really think it and many federal ‘public health’ roles should go away and have no rightful place,” acknowledging her view is unpopular but defensible.

Hockett questioned the constitutional basis of federal public health authority, asserting, “Public health, as conceived and practiced, overreaches—pretending to care while claiming dominion far beyond biblical bounds.” She urged Americans to consider, “Who has authority over the body—and in what circumstances?” adding, “Civil government has a role, but it is limited, not lordly. Our bodies are temples, not state property.” Reflecting on COVID-19 policies, Hockett said they revealed the need to “right-size the role of ‘public health’” at the federal level. She encouraged people, particularly Christians, to examine biblical teachings on sickness and wellness, suggesting that Means’ nomination highlights the questionable legitimacy of centralized health authority.

Other voices have critiqued Means’ rise. Debbie Lerman, a retired science writer and Brownstone Institute Fellow, wrote in a January 2025 article that Casey and Calley Means may be “agents” managing populist discontent over COVID-19 policies, a theory she acknowledged as speculative. Lerman noted Means’ silence on lockdowns and vaccine mandates during 2020–2024, contrasting her success—such as Levels’ $100 million in funding—with the censorship faced by medical professionals who opposed COVID policies. “While millions were losing their jobs and businesses, Casey Means managed to rake in impressive investments,” Lerman wrote, questioning her portrayal as a “medical freedom crusader.”

Means’ nomination awaits Senate confirmation, which Nesheiwat was scheduled to face before her withdrawal. The announcement follows other health-related nomination shifts in Trump’s administration, including the withdrawal of Dave Weldon for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention leadership, as reported by The Guardian.