Trump picks holistic doctor Casey Means as US Surgeon General
Dr. Casey Means, a holistic medicine practitioner and wellness influencer from Los Angeles (Photo: Facebook)
Donald Trump's decision to nominate Dr. Casey Means, a holistic medicine practitioner and wellness influencer from Los Angeles, as the next US Surgeon General signals a bold departure from conventional public health policy, according to Los Angeles Times.
Stanford-trained Dr. Casey Means left her surgical residency just before completion, citing deep frustration with a healthcare system she described as "exploitative."
"During my training as a surgeon, I saw how broken and exploitative the healthcare system is and left to focus on how to keep people out of the operating room," she explains on her website.
Her career pivot intensified after her mother's late-stage pancreatic cancer diagnosis.
Co-founding the digital health company Levels Health, Means emerged as a vocal critic of "Big Pharma," arguing on Tucker Carlson's podcast:
"The system is rigged against the American patient to create diseases and then profit off of them."
Her approach emphasizes metabolic health, lifestyle change, and a food-based response to chronic illness.
Aligning with RFK Jr. and Trump's health agenda
Trump introduced Means as a key partner in the "Make America Healthy Again" movement, working closely with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
"Casey has impeccable 'MAHA' credentials, and will work closely with our wonderful Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., to reverse the Chronic Disease Epidemic," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Yet some colleagues, including pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig, questioned her fit, given Kennedy's controversial vaccine views.
"She didn't want to be part of the administration because she couldn't accede to RFK's views," Lustig told the Times, though he still praised her commitment to changing how chronic disease is treated: "These diseases are not fixable by drugs — they're fixable by food. Casey knows that."
Whether her unconventional philosophy helps reshape American health policy or fuels new controversy, Dr. Means now steps into one of the most visible roles in national medicine.
The decision follows another recent staffing change: Trump announced that Mike Waltz will be nominated as the next US Ambassador to the United Nations after stepping down as National Security Advisor.
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