by ALEXX ALTMAN-DEVILBISS | The National News Desk
WASHINGTON (TNND) — President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday creating a Women’s Health Division at the National Institutes of Health and a White House task force to address gaps in women’s health research.
Melania’s Leadership on Women’s Health Initiative
First Lady Melania Trump, who helped shape the initiative, called it “a transformative moment for women in America.” She said advances in science and greater openness around once-taboo subjects create an opportunity to “reinvent women’s healthcare.”
“Previous generations fought for women’s rights. Our generation will fight to discover the cures that will ensure a woman can live her life in health and to the fullest,” she said in the Rose Garden.
Five Pillars of Women’s Health Innovation
During her remarks, Melania Trump outlined five pillars of women’s health innovation:
- Direct research funding toward finding cures for conditions that affect women disproportionately or uniquely.
- Use superintelligence to improve understanding of female biology and speed up medical discoveries.
- Move promising treatments from laboratories to patients more quickly while maintaining strict safety standards.
- Make medical breakthroughs accessible and affordable to women, regardless of their financial circumstances.
- Replace generations of silence with open conversation, education and compassion around women’s health.
She said the initiative must serve women at every stage of life, from young girls to mothers and older women who deserve “vitality, dignity, and independence.”
Research Priorities and Executive Order Details
The executive order identifies research priorities including cardiovascular disease, cancer, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, autoimmune and inflammatory conditions, osteoporosis, mental health, chronic pain, endometriosis, fibroids, polyendocrine metabolic ovary syndrome, infertility, maternal health, menopause, neurological disorders and aging.
The order also rescinds women’s health initiatives from the prior administration, saying the new effort will focus on translating research into improved clinical care.
Trump credited Melania with conceiving the initiative, saying she had made an “outstanding contribution” to the well-being of American children and families and was bringing “extraordinary leadership and skills” to improving women’s health.
Leadership and Task Force Implementation
White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, who recently completed treatment for breast cancer, and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will lead the task force, Trump said.
He called Wiles “a tremendous fighter” and said she cares deeply about improving women’s health. The task force was set to hold its first meeting Monday, which is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
