自主新闻 特朗普提名的下一任FDA局长海迪·奥弗顿博士，在周三参议院健康、教育、劳工和养老金（HELP）委员会的确认听证会上，首先感谢了她的“主和救世主耶稣基督”。整个听证会期间，奥弗顿面临了许多关于疫苗安全、调味电子烟和食源性疾病的问题。考虑到她过去的反堕胎言论，毫不奇怪，奥弗顿最令人担忧的回答——以及不回答——都与堕胎和避孕有关。
Autonomy News Dr. Heidi Overton, Donald Trump’s nominee to be the next head of the FDA, opened a Wednesday confirmation hearing before the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) committee by thanking her “lord and savior, Jesus Christ.” Throughout the hearing, Overton faced many questions about vaccine safety, flavored vapes, and foodborne illness. Perhaps unsurprisingly given her past anti-abortion statements many of Overton’s most alarming answers—and non-answers—had to do with abortion and birth control.
“我想知道你是否同意宫内节育器是堕胎药，”来自华盛顿州的民主党人帕蒂·默里问道，她提到了特朗普政府的虚假说法，即某些避孕方式（包括宫内节育器）会导致堕胎。奥弗顿不仅拒绝回答，她的回答甚至暗示FDA可能会改变立场。“如果我被确认为FDA局长，我将全面了解他们之前的所有决定，并根据安全性和有效性标准做出裁定，”她说。
“I wanted to know if you agree that an IUD is an abortifacient,” asked Washington Democrat Patty Murray, referencing the Trump administration’s false claims that some forms of birth control, including intrauterine devices, can cause abortion. Overton not only refused to answer, but her response even suggested that the FDA could change its stance. “If I’m confirmed as FDA commissioner, I’ll be fully briefed on all their prior decisions and make determinations according to the standards of safety and efficacy,” she said.
奥弗顿关于避孕的言论值得注意，因为特朗普的司法部在一个正在进行的法庭案件中拒绝表示某些避孕方式不会导致堕胎，而且许多反堕胎团体反对使用宫内节育器和紧急避孕药，声称它们是堕胎药。
Overton’s birth control comments are notable as Trump’s Department of Justice has refused to say in an active court case that certain forms of birth control don’t cause abortions, and because many anti-abortion groups oppose the use of IUDs and emergency contraception, claiming they are abortifacient.
如果获得确认，目前担任白宫国内政策顾问的奥弗顿将面临巨大压力，被要求限制堕胎药的获取。穆雷还询问了这位提名人关于她2023年的言论，即堕胎药米非司酮“对女性有危险”，该言论是在为极右翼组织“美国优先政策研究所”撰写的一篇论文中提出的。穆雷问奥弗顿是否同意FDA对米非司酮的批准，“这意味着该机构认为其安全有效”。奥弗顿仅表示，“米非司酮经FDA批准，符合其安全性和有效性标准。”穆雷再次追问她是否认为该药物安全。“我知道它符合安全性和有效性标准，”奥弗顿说。这位提名人在谈论米非司酮法规符合FDA标准时，反复使用了过去时。
If confirmed, Overton—who is currently serving as a White House domestic policy advisor—will face intense pressure to roll back access to abortion pills. Murray also asked the nominee about her 2023 claim that the abortion drug mifepristone is “dangerous to women,” which Overton made in a paper written for the far-right America First Policy Institute. Murray asked Overton whether she agreed with the FDA’s approval of mifepristone, “which means the agency deems it safe and effective.” Overton said only that “mifepristone was approved by the FDA as having met its safety and efficacy standard.” Murray pressed her again on whether or not she believes the drug is safe. “I know that it has met the safety and efficacy standard,” Overton said. The nominee repeatedly used the past tense when talking about mifepristone regulations meeting FDA standards.
穆雷称奥弗顿在论文中的结论“令人担忧”，因为这与科学证据相冲突，科学证据反复表明米非司酮安全有效——包括通过远程医疗开具处方时。奥弗顿回应称，她一直“以数据为驱动”，并且该论文是在“FDA改变该药物获取方式之后”撰写的。她指的是2021年的一项法规，该法规于2023年正式生效，允许通过远程医疗开具米非司酮处方。奥弗顿随后提到了FDA正在进行的米非司酮安全性“审查”，并表示这“非常重要”。据报道，前FDA局长马卡里拖延了该审查，使其无法在中期选举前完成。
Murray called Overton’s conclusion in the paper “alarming” because it conflicts with scientific evidence, which has repeatedly shown mifepristone to be safe and effective—including when prescribed via telehealth Overton replied that she has always “been driven by data,” and that the paper was written “after a change was made at the FDA in how that medication was accessed.” She was referring to a 2021 regulation, formalized in 2023 that allowed mifepristone to be prescribed by telemedicine. Overton then referenced an ongoing FDA “review” of mifepristone’s safety, which she said is “very important.” Former FDA head Marty Makary reportedly slow-walked that review so it wouldn’t be complete until after the midterm elections.
“我听出你现在在改变说法，说你认为[米非司酮]不安全，”穆雷说。听证会后期，另一位民主党人、新罕布什尔州参议员玛吉·哈桑呼吁奥弗顿因过去对该药物的言论而回避米非司酮审查。
“I hear you changing your answer now, saying you don’t think [mifepristone] is safe,” Murray said. Later in the hearing, another Democrat, New Hampshire Senator Maggie Hassan, called for Overton to recuse herself from the mifepristone review based on her past comments about the drug.
目前有五起诉讼正在挑战FDA对米非司酮的监管：其中三起由反堕胎州提起，称该机构对该药物的监管过于宽松；两起由堕胎服务提供者提起，联邦法官在其中裁定FDA维持对该药物的限制。FDA在这些案件中反复引用其米非司酮安全审查作为暂停诉讼的理由。
There are currently five active lawsuits challenging the FDA’s regulation of mifepristone: Three filed by abortion-hostile states that say the agency’s regulation of the drug is too lax, and two filed by abortion providers in which federal judges have ruled that the FDA maintains restrictions on the medication. The FDA has repeatedly cited its mifepristone safety review in these cases as a reason to pause the litigation.
“随着米非司酮在州和联邦层面接受审查，奥弗顿医生利用其医生身份误导公众，对我们已知安全的药物进行欺骗。”尽管对该机构的某些运作表现出不了解——包括未能说出负责重要食品安全措施的FDA部门名称——但奥弗顿对米非司酮诉讼表现出了相当深入的了解。针对印第安纳州共和党人吉姆·班克斯的提问，后者要求奥弗顿加快审查，她表示，如果获确认为局长，米非司酮监管“将立即摆上[她的]桌面”，因为FDA须在路易斯安那州提起的一起案件中于10月初提交最新情况。她还引用了夏威夷州的诉讼，这是可能推翻限制措施的诉讼之一。
“As mifepristone is under scrutiny at the state and federal levels, Dr. Overton leverages her status as a physician to deceive the public about medications we know are safe.” Despite showing ignorance of some of the agency’s operations—including by failing to name a division of the FDA responsible for important food safety measures—Overton showed significant knowledge of the mifepristone litigation. In response to questions from Indiana Republican Jim Banks, who asked Overton to accelerate the review, she said that, if confirmed as commissioner, regulation of mifepristone “would immediately be on [her] desk” because the FDA is required to produce an update in early October in a case filed by Louisiana She also cited litigation in Hawaii, one of the lawsuits that could roll back restrictions.
班克斯还提到了该机构的调查权。“调查分发堕胎药物并误导女性其风险的公司，是否符合公共利益？”他问道。在回答中，奥弗顿提到了HELP委员会共和党人最近的一份报告，该报告声称查明了关于米非司酮制造商的“潜在担忧”。“如果查明存在问题……我将致力于确保每家公司都遵守有关要求的法律，”奥弗顿回答。
Banks also brought up the agency’s investigatory powers. “Is it in the public interest to investigate companies that dispense abortion drugs and mislead women about their risk?” he asked. In her answer, Overton mentioned a recent report by HELP committee Republicans that purported to identify “potential concerns” about mifepristone manufacturers. “If there are issues identified … I would be committed to making sure that every company is following the law regarding the requirements,” Overton answered.
3月，委员会主席比尔·卡西迪和其他四名共和党人致信FDA，呼吁其与其他联邦机构合作，打击堕胎药。23名成员的参议院委员会何时就推进奥弗顿——她拥有公共卫生和预防医学委员会认证——进入全院表决进行投票尚不清楚，但据报道特朗普正在推动在中期选举前确认她的任命。
In March, committee chair Bill Cassidy and four other Republicans sent a letter to the FDA calling on it to work with other federal agencies to crack down on abortion pills. It’s not yet clear when the 23-member Senate committee will hold a vote on whether to advance Overton—who is board-certified in public health and preventative medicine—to the full chamber, but Trump is reportedly pushing for her to be confirmed before the midterm elections.
缅因州共和党人苏珊·柯林斯——她将在今秋面临艰难的连选连任，并声称支持选择权——在听证会上没有问过任何关于堕胎权的问题，尽管她表示在一次私人会议中与奥弗顿讨论过该问题。与此同时，阿拉斯加州共和党人丽莎·穆尔科斯基表示担忧，要求米非司酮必须进行面对面预约会损害她所在州农村居民的利益，并表示担心存在“政治施压”。穆尔科斯基没有要求奥弗顿回应，但值得注意的是，考虑到缅因州也有大片农村地区，她强调了可能对医疗服务造成的干扰，而柯林斯却没有。另一位将在11月面临选民投票的参议员、俄亥俄州共和党人约翰·休斯特德完全缺席了听证会。
Maine Republican Susan Collins—who’s in a tough reelection battle this fall and claims to be pro-choice—didn’t ask a single question about abortion access, though she said she discussed the issue with Overton during a private meeting. Meanwhile, Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski, also a Republican, expressed concern that requiring in-person appointments for mifepristone would hurt rural residents of her state and said she worried that “political pressure” was at play. Murkowski didn’t ask Overton to respond, but it was striking that she highlighted possible disruptions to care when Collins did not, given that Maine also has vast rural areas. Another senator facing voters in November, Ohio GOPer John Husted, skipped the hearing entirely.
听证会后，德克萨斯州妇产科医生、生殖健康医生组织董事长加扎莱·莫亚迪博士称奥弗顿的提名“简直是对一个受托保障国家健康与安全的公共机构的侮辱”。莫亚迪补充道：“随着米非司酮在州和联邦层面都受到审查，奥弗顿博士利用她医生的身份，就我们已知安全的药物误导公众。”
Following the hearing, Dr. Ghazaleh Moayedi, a Texas OB/GYN and the board chair of Physicians for Reproductive Health called Overton’s nomination “nothing short of insulting to a public institution entrusted with the health and safety of our nation.” Moayedi added: “As mifepristone is under scrutiny at the state and federal levels, Dr. Overton leverages her status as a physician to deceive the public about medications we know are safe.”