A virtual confirmation hearing for President Donald Trump’s surgeon general pick Dr. Casey Means has been postponed because she went into labor.
Means, 38, was appearing remotely because she was nine months pregnant with her first child.
Her opening remarks for the hearing expected on Thursday had been prewritten.
“Our nation is angry, exhausted, and hurting from preventable disease. Rates of high blood pressure, many cancers, autoimmune conditions, type 2 diabetes, mental health disorders, dementia, neurodevelopmental challenges, and youth suicide have all increased in the past two decades,” the prepared remarks, obtained by Fox News, said.
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“This public-health crisis is touching every American family. It is robbing our children of possibility, our workforce of productivity, and our nation of security. It strains our federal budget and dims hope for millions,” she planned to say.
As the nation’s doctor, the surgeon general is a leader for Americans and health officials on public health issues. If confirmed, Means will represent an administration that has already transformed the public health landscape by calling for increased scrutiny of vaccines, the nation’s food supply, pesticides and prescription drugs.
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Means, a Stanford-educated physician who rose to popularity as a wellness influencer after becoming disillusioned with traditional medicine, was expected to share a vision for ending chronic disease by targeting its root causes, an idea that aligns with the Make America Healthy Again message of her close ally, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
She has no government experience and her license to practice as a physician is inactive, The Associated Press reported, adding that it was not immediately clear when the hearing would be rescheduled.
“Everyone’s happy for Dr. Means and her family,” said Emily Hilliard, deputy press secretary for the Health and Human Services Department. “This is one of the few times in life it’s easy to ask to move a Senate hearing.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.