President Donald Trump is suggesting Dr. Casey Means to be the new surgeon general. Dr. Means is a doctor who now works as a wellness expert and is good friends with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is the Health and Human Services Secretary. Trump chose her after his first choice for this important health job quit.

On Wednesday, Trump posted on social media that Means has excellent 'MAHA' credentials, which refers to the 'Make America Healthy Again' slogan. He added that she will work to get rid of chronic diseases and make Americans healthier and feel better.

"Her academic achievements and her life's work are truly outstanding," Trump said. "Dr. Casey Means could be one of the best Surgeon Generals in United States History."

Through this action, Trump rescinded his nomination of former Fox News medical contributor Janette Nesheiwat for the role, signifying at least the second health-related candidate put forward by Trump to be withdrawn from Senate consideration. Nesheiwat had been slated to testify before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Thursday regarding her confirmation.

Means and her sibling, former lobbyist Calley Means, played a pivotal role as counselors in Kennedy's improbable 2024 presidential campaign, assisting in arranging his endorsement of Trump the previous summer.

Lacking governmental experience and having withdrawn from her surgical residency, Casey Means cited disillusionment with conventional medicine as her rationale. She subsequently established Levels, a health technology firm facilitating users' monitoring of blood sugar and other physiological indicators. Furthermore, she generates revenue through the endorsement of dietary supplements, topical applications, infusions, and various other commodities across her social media platforms.

In interviews and articles, Means and her brother say that many things are causing the country's health problems. They mention powerful food companies that have made Americans addicted to unhealthy food, so they need daily medicine from drug companies to control conditions like obesity, diabetes, and other long-term illnesses.

Most health experts agree that the American diet, which has a lot of processed foods, helps cause obesity and related health problems. But Means says more, connecting changes in what people eat and how they live to many conditions like infertility, Alzheimer's, depression, and erectile dysfunction.

“Almost every chronic health issue Western medicine attempts to treat stems from our cells being overwhelmed by contemporary lifestyles,” Means stated in a 2024 book co-authored with her brother.

Means has largely avoided publicly endorsing Kennedy’s contentious and discredited opinions regarding vaccines. However, on her website, she has advocated for further examination of vaccine safety and proposes streamlining the process for patients to pursue legal action against pharmaceutical companies in instances of vaccine-related harm. Since the late 1980s, federal legislation has protected these companies from legal responsibility to promote vaccine development, free from the risk of expensive personal injury litigation.

After undergoing surgical training at Stanford University, she has garnered a significant online following through her critiques of the medical establishment and advocacy for natural diets and lifestyle adjustments to manage obesity, diabetes, and various other chronic ailments.

If Means is confirmed as surgeon general, he would be responsible for helping to promote Kennedy’s large MAHA plan. This plan wants to remove many additives and chemicals from U.S. foods, get rid of conflicts of interest at federal agencies, and encourage healthier foods in school lunches and other food programs.

Nesheiwat, initially chosen by Trump, serves as a medical director for an urgent care provider in New York and has frequently contributed medical knowledge and commentary on Fox News. A staunch advocate for Trump, she publicly displays photographs of them together on social media. Furthermore, Nesheiwat is related through marriage to former national security adviser Mike Waltz, who has been put forward as Trump's potential ambassador to the United Nations.

However, she had faced recent criticism from Laura Loomer, a prominent far-right supporter of Trump who played a key role in removing several individuals from the president’s National Security Council. Loomer had asserted on X earlier in the week that the position of surgeon general should not be held by “a pro-COVID vaccine appointee who benefited from nepotism, is currently involved in a medical malpractice lawsuit, and did not attend medical school in the US.”

Last month, independent freelance journalist Anthony Clark disclosed that Nesheiwat obtained her medical degree from the American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine in St. Maarten, contradicting her claim of graduating from the University of Arkansas School of Medicine. The White House withdrew Nesheiwat's nomination due to concerns regarding the likelihood of her confirmation, according to an anonymous source privy to the administration's rationale.

Nesheiwat wrote on social media on Wednesday, "I am excited to keep supporting President Trump and work closely with Secretary Kennedy in an important policy job to Make America Healthy Again! My main goal is still to make all Americans healthier and happier, and that goal has not changed."

As the nation's chief medical officer, the Surgeon General supervises 6,000 members of the U.S. Public Health Service Corps and is authorized to issue warnings about public health risks.

In March, the White House withdrew its nomination of former Florida Republican Congressman Dave Weldon to head the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.