Trump signs order creating women's health division at NIH
President Trump signed an executive order establishing a Women’s Health Division at the NIH and a White House task force.
Key facts
- President Trump signed an executive order creating a Women’s Health Division at the NIH.
- The order establishes a White House task force co-chaired by Susie Wiles and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
- The NIH division must be established within 90 days.
- The division will not replace the NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health.
- The HHS must fund the task force's administrative costs, but the order lists no specific dollar amounts.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday in Washington creating a Women’s Health Division at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and a White House task force. The White House stated the division will accelerate scientific discoveries, expand clinical access, and modernize care for women. The order requires the division to be established within 90 days.
The White House said the new division will not replace the NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health but will have a broader mandate beyond research. First Lady Melania Trump said the initiative sets a new standard for women's health. She stated that biotechnology and super intelligence offer a chance to reinvent healthcare.
The White House task force will be co-chaired by Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Wiles recently announced she is cancer-free. The order mandates that the HHS fund the administrative costs of the task force, though it includes no specific funding targets.
Kaiser Health News reported that the NIH workforce is at its lowest level in decades following layoffs. The NIH was ordered to reduce spending by 35 percent across all divisions, a reduction of $2.6 billion. In April 2025, the HHS terminated regional contracts for the Women’s Health Initiative, which led to a multi-state lawsuit.
Context
The NIH has faced a $2.6 billion budget reduction and workforce layoffs. In April 2025, the HHS terminated contracts for the Women’s Health Initiative, the largest longitudinal study on older women's health at that time.
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