US President Donald Trump nominated Dr. Nicole Saphier as the next US surgeon general after withdrawing Casey Means’ nomination amid mounting Senate scrutiny.
Trump announced decision on April 30, praising Saphier as a “star doctor” with extensive experience in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer.
Radiologist and breast cancer specialist
Nicole Saphier is an American radiologist, medical commentator, author, and public health advocate best known for her work in breast imaging and television medical analysis.
Saphier was born in January 1982 in Scottsdale, Arizona and received her MD from Ross University School of Medicine. She later completed radiology training at Maricopa Integrated Health Systems and completed an internship at the Mayo Clinic.
Saphier currently serves as director of breast imaging at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in Monmouth, New Jersey, and is also an associate professor at Weill Cornell Medicine.
Fox News contributor and public figure
From 2018 to 2026, Saphier worked as a medical contributor for Fox News, appearing frequently on television during the COVID-19 pandemic and other public health debates.
She has also hosted the health and wellness podcast Wellness Unmasked and written several books, including:
Make America Healthy Again: How Bad Behavior and Big Government Caused the Trillion Dollar Crisis (2020)
Panic Attack: Playing politics with science in the fight against COVID-19
Love, Mom: Inspiring Stories Celebrating Motherhood (2024)
Her 2020 book promoted prevention-oriented healthcare and criticized aspects of government healthcare systems.
Not always fully in line with Trump
Although Saphier is now Trump’s nominee, she has at times distanced herself from his rhetoric on health issues.
She previously criticized both the Trump and Biden administrations for what she described as the “politicization of science” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2022, she pushed for an end to mask and vaccine mandates while continuing to advocate for vaccination more broadly.
Recently, Saphier publicly pushed back after Trump warned pregnant women against taking Tylenol.
“For decades, women have endured a paternalistic tone in medicine,” she said.
“The president’s recent comments on Tylenol in pregnancy are a prime example. Recommending moderation was reasonable, providing it in a condescending and simplistic manner was not.”
Links to the MAHA movement
Saphier is believed to be widely involved in the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) movement associated with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Trump allies focused on food safety, chronic disease prevention, and skepticism about parts of public health.
At the same time, she tried to position herself as more mainstream and medically based than some figures in the movement.
He currently serves on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Breast Cancer in Young Women and advises the New Jersey Department of Health.
Why the Casey Means nomination collapsed
Trump turned to Saphier after Casey Means’ nomination faced serious opposition in the Senate.
Lawmakers questioned Means’ qualifications, including her incomplete surgical residency, inactive medical license and controversial comments about vaccines.
Means faced backlash over a 2024 social media post describing the hepatitis B vaccination of low-risk newborns as “absolute madness.”
Republican senators including Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins have reportedly expressed concerns about supporting her nomination.
Trump blamed “political games” and criticism from lawmakers, including Bill Cassidy, for derailing the confirmation effort.
Can Saphier secure Senate confirmation?
Saphier’s nomination is seen by many Republicans as a safer and more conventional choice than Means.
Her clinical experience, media experience and established role in mainstream medicine may help her avoid some of the confirmation problems that have plagued past Trump nominees.
But senators are still expected to probe her pandemic-era comments, views on vaccine mandates and ties to Trump’s broader health care agenda during confirmation hearings in the coming weeks.
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