President Trump's pick for surgeon general declined to clearly dismiss a link between childhood vaccines and autism during a Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday, putting her at odds with the broader medical consensus. Casey Means, a wellness influencer and health-tech entrepreneur, was pressed repeatedly by Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, a physician who chairs the Senate HELP Committee, on whether she believes vaccines cause autism, Politico reports. Cassidy called the idea "incorrect." Means did not directly reject the theory, saying instead, "We do not know what, as a medical community, causes autism," and adding that "we should not leave any stone unturned."
- Measles. The Louisiana senator also asked Means whether she would advise parents to vaccinate their children against measles during an ongoing outbreak in South Carolina, as well as against the flu. Means repeatedly stopped short of urging vaccination, saying, "I believe every patient, mother, parent needs to have a conversation with their physician," while also stating she supports the measles vaccine itself.
- Magic mushrooms. Republican Sen. Susan Collins, holding Means' book Good Energy, said she was concerned about the nominee encouraging people to use magic mushrooms. "Strong scientific evidence suggests that this psychedelic therapy can be one of the most meaningful experiences of life for some people, as they have been for me," Means wrote in the 2024 book. Means said that the "science is still emerging" on psilocybin and that what she would say as a public official is different from what she said as a private citizen, the Hill reports. "So it would certainly not be a recommendation to the American people to do that, under no circumstances," Means said.
- Business ties. Means made more than $500,000 from 2024 to the summer of 2025 from companies selling products like "herbal remedies and wellness products," the Washington Post reports. Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy said he was concerned that she had violated FTC rules by recommending the products to her followers without disclosing sponsorships. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, another Democrat, told Means it seemed that she had spent her career "sort of making money off the flaws" in the health care system.
- Hepatitis B. Senators from both parties grilled Means over past remarks criticizing the hepatitis B vaccine for newborns, CBS News reports. Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski rejected Means' argument that it is only spread through sexual disease and drug use, saying it has been spread through "ordinary household, community contact" in Alaska. Means told Democratic Sen. Angela Alsobrook that a tweet in which she suggested that vaccinating newborns for hepatitis B is a "crime" had been taken "out of context."
- Pesticides. Means, who has strongly criticized pesticides, told senators that "changing anything overnight would be devastating to the American farmer and the American consumer," per CBS. She added that the administration "is committed to understanding what's in our food and how it's affecting our body and how cumulative exposures to various chemicals in our environment is affecting us."
Cassidy's questioning comes during renewed political fights over vaccines and government recommendations. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has promoted unsupported claims linking vaccines to autism and has overseen major revisions to the CDC's childhood immunization schedule, including dropping routine hepatitis B shots for newborns.
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