US surgeon general nominee dodges vaccine questions in Senate hearing | CIDRAP

Casey Means, MD, a Stanford-trained physician who stopped practicing medicine when she left her surgical residency to become a full-time wellness influencer and author, dodged several questions from senators yesterday during a confirmation hearing for her surgeon general position.

Senators, including Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana) and Tim Kaine (D-Virginia), asked pointed questions about whether Means would recommend that parents vaccinate children with the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine, and if the seasonal influenza vaccine saved lives. In a pointed back-and-forth with Cassidy, Means refused to say she did not believe vaccines cause autism, instead saying, “no stone should be left unturned” when researching the autism crisis.

At another point in the hearing, Means defended removing the newborn dose of the hepatitis B vaccine from the childhood immunization schedule.

I think there are many parents, and I think the administration, question whether this vaccine is necessary for all children on the first day of life.

“I think there are many parents, and I think the administration, question whether this vaccine is necessary for all children on the first day of life,” Means said.

Means has close ties to RFK Jr** **

The surgeon general post, considered the nation’s top doctor, has been vacant for the entirety of President Donald Trump’s second term. Means was initially supposed to have a hearing in the fall, but it was delayed because of the birth of her first child.

Mean’s brother, Calley Means, serves as a senior adviser for the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) since 2025. The Means siblings have been known for their early promotion of the “Make America Health Again” movement and their friendship with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.