The Trump Administration Casts Out the ‘Soul’ of MAHA
The Trump administration has withdrawn Casey Means's nomination for surgeon general, marking a setback for the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement. Means, a wellness influencer without a current medical license, faced bipartisan Senate skepticism over her unorthodox health views and associations. Despite support from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the White House, her nomination stalled due to concerns about vaccine skepticism and lack of medical establishment credibility.
- ▪President Trump withdrew Casey Means's nomination for surgeon general, citing political obstruction by Senator Bill Cassidy.
- ▪Casey Means, a former surgical resident and wellness influencer, co-authored the book 'Good Energy' and promoted alternative health views including skepticism of vaccines and conventional medicine.
- ▪Three Republican senators—Bill Cassidy, Lisa Murkowski, and Susan Collins—expressed reservations about Means's nomination, with committee members stating she lacked sufficient support.
- ▪Means has advocated for raw milk, psychedelics, and 'spiritual' approaches to health, while criticizing seed oils, pesticides, and hormonal birth control.
- ▪The MAHA movement, led by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., faces internal frustration over the failed nomination, with allies calling it a blow to the movement's core.
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HealthThe Trump Administration Casts Out the ‘Soul’ of MAHAThe withdrawal of Casey Means’s nomination for surgeon general is the latest blow to the movement.By Tom BartlettBrendan Smialowski / AFP / GettyApril 30, 2026, 7:40 PM ET ShareSave As of today, it seems likely that the nation’s next surgeon general will, at least, have an active medical license. President Trump announced that he was pulling his nomination for Casey Means, a wellness influencer who dropped out of her surgical residency in 2018, in a Truth Social post this afternoon. The move is the latest setback for Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Make America Healthy Again movement, which has embraced Means’s criticism of the medical establishment along with her fondness for raw milk and psychedelics.
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