Senate HELP Committee Moves Trump’s Surgeon General Nominee Nicole Saphier Forward
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee approved President Trump's nominee Nicole Saphier for surgeon general, sending her to the full Senate for a vote.
President Trump’s choice for surgeon general, radiologist Nicole Saphier, cleared the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and now proceeds to the full Senate. The committee’s decision came via a party-line vote, reflecting partisan alignment. Saphier, who previously served as a medical contributor for one outlet and directs breast imaging at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Monmouth, was nominated in April and lauded by the president as a “star physician.”
The advancement follows the removal of Casey Means’ nomination after a clash with Senate HELP chairman Bill Cassidy. In her committee hearing, Saphier emphasized the importance of the MMR vaccine and denied any link between childhood vaccines and autism, statements that secured Cassidy’s vote. The nomination now awaits confirmation by the entire Senate.
Why it matters
The nomination determines who will lead U.S. public health messaging as surgeon general.
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