List of Department of Health and Human Services appointments by Donald Trump explained

Color key

Denotes appointees serving in offices that did not require Senate confirmation.

Denotes appointees confirmed by the Senate.

Denotes appointees awaiting Senate confirmation.

Denotes appointees serving in an acting capacity.

Denotes appointees who have left office or offices which have been disbanded.

Denotes nominees who were withdrawn prior to being confirmed or assuming office.

Previous officeholders

data-sort-type="text"	Office	data-sort-type="text"	Name	data-sort-type="date"	Took office	data-sort-type="date"	Left office	Notes
Secretary of Health and Human Services	Norris Cochran	January 20, 2017	February 10, 2017
	Tom Price	February 10, 2017	September 29, 2017	Resigned following scrutiny of his use of private charters and military aircraft for travel.^[20] ^[21] His tenure was the shortest in the office's history.^[22]
	Don J. Wright	September 29, 2017	October 10, 2017
Assistant Secretary for Health		February 10, 2017	February 15, 2018
	Karen DeSalvo	October 2014	February 10, 2017
Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services (Public Affairs)	Charmaine Yoest	May 14, 2017	February 28, 2018	Left to join the Office of National Drug Control Policy^[23]
	Judy Stecker	March 9, 2018	October 2019	Promoted to Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations
	Ryan Murphy	October 2019	April 15, 2020	^[24]
	Michael Caputo	April 16, 2020	September 16, 2020	Took a leave of absence with serious health issues. Previously, Caputo accused career scientists at CDC of political bias. Murphy assumed Caputo's duties.^[25]
Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use	Elinore McCance-Katz	September 11, 2017	January 7, 2021	Resigned following the 2021 storming of the U.S. Capitol.^[26]
Deputy Director of Communications	Ximena Barreto	December 4, 2017	July 27, 2018	Resigned after reportedly making anti-Muslim comments.^[27]
Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention	Brenda Fitzgerald	July 7, 2017	January 31, 2018	Resigned due to scrutiny of her financial holdings, which included stock in Japan Tobacco.^[28] Her tenure was the shortest in the office's history, excluding interim appointments.^[29]
	Anne Schuchat	January 20, 2017	July 7, 2017
		January 31, 2018	March 26, 2018
Chief of Staff of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention	Kyle McGowan	March 2017	August 14, 2020	^[30]
Deputy Chief of Staff of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention	Amanda Campbell	2017
Commissioner of Food and Drugs	Scott Gottlieb	May 11, 2017	April 5, 2019	Announced his resignation on March 5.^[31]
	Norman Sharpless	April 5, 2019	November 1, 2019	Sharpless is also the Director of the National Cancer Institute.
	Brett Giroir	November 6, 2019	December 16, 2019	Dr. Giroir was also Assistant Secretary for Health.
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response	Rick Bright	November 15, 2016	April 22, 2020	Dr. Bright filed a whistleblower complaint alleging that his removal was politically motivated. He was reassigned to NIH, where he developed a plan to implement a national coronavirus testing infrastructure. NIH leadership ignored his work, and he resigned in protest on October 6.^[32] ^[33]
Director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority
HHS Inspector General	Daniel Levinson	September 8, 2004	May 31, 2019	Retired
	Joanne Chiedi	June 1, 2019	December 27, 2019	Retired after three decades of government service. In January 2020, she became chief administrative officer of DLA Piper.^[34] ^[35]

Notes and References

1. News: Trump picks Alex Azar to lead the Health and Human Services Department. . November 13, 2017 . November 13, 2017.
2. Web site: On the Nomination (Confirmation Alex Michael Azar II, of Indiana, to be Secretary of Health and Human Services) . US Senate . 20 June 2023.
3. Web site: Phillips . Ariella . Trump again taps Goldman Sachs alum in deputy secretary push . . March 14, 2017 . March 14, 2017.
4. Web site: On the Nomination (Confirmation Eric D. Hargan, of Illinois, to be Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services) . US Senate . 20 June 2023.
5. Web site: President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Personnel to Key Administration Posts . April 21, 2017 . April 25, 2017. . . Miscimarra was first sworn in as a Member of the National Labor Relations Board on August 7, 2013 for a term that expires on December 16, 2017. ... MacDougall was designated acting Chair of the Occupational Safety & Health Review Commission in January 2017. In 2014, she was nominated to the Commission by then-President Obama and confirmed unanimously by the Senate..
6. https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2017/06/29/president-donald-j-trump-announces-intent-nominate-jerome-m-adams-public "President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Jerome M. Adams to the Public Health Service"
7. Web site: PN1248 – Nomination of Sarah C. Arbes for Department of Health and Human Services, 116th Congress (2019–2020). October 30, 2019. www.congress.gov. November 1, 2019.
8. Web site: Sarah Cudworth Arbes. www.linkedin.com. November 1, 2019.
9. https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2017/06/07/president-donald-j-trump-announces-intent-nominate-lynn-johnson-be "President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Lynn A. Johnson to be Assistant Secretary for Family Support at the Department of Health and Human Services"
10. Web site: On the Nomination (Confirmation Lynn A. Johnson, of Colorado, to be Assistant Secretary for Family Support) . US Senate . 20 June 2023.
11. Web site: Trump Announces Intent to Nominate and Appoint Personnel to Key Administration Posts. whitehouse.gov. National Archives. May 8, 2018.
12. Web site: Trump Announces Key Additions to his Administration. . . March 19, 2018.
13. Web site: On the Nomination (Confirmation: Elizabeth Darling, of Texas, to be Commissioner on Children, Youth, and Families, Department of Health and Human Services) . US Senate . 20 June 2023.
14. News: Trump selects Seema Verma, a Medicaid cost-cutter, to helm CMS . November 29, 2016.
15. Web site: On the Nomination (Confirmation Seema Verma, of Indiana, to be Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) . US Senate . 20 June 2023.
16. Web site: President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Personnel to Key Administration Posts. whitehouse.gov. National Archives. February 13, 2018.
17. Web site: Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Individuals to Key Administration Posts . . . October 30, 2019.
18. Web site: Trump Announces Intent to Nominate and Appoint Individuals to Key Administration Posts . . . November 3, 2019.
19. Web site: On the Nomination (Confirmation: Stephen Hahn, of Texas, to be Commissioner of Food and Drugs, Department of Health and Human Services) . US Senate . 20 June 2023.
20. News: Baker . Peter . Peter Baker (journalist) . Thrush . Glenn . Glenn Thrush . Haberman . Maggie . Maggie Haberman . September 29, 2017 . Health Secretary Tom Price Resigns After Drawing Ire for Chartered Flights . . New York . September 30, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170929234634/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/29/us/politics/tom-price-trump-hhs.html . September 29, 2017 . live.
21. News: Price took military jets to Europe, Asia for over $500K . Pradhan, Rachana . Diamond, Dan . Politico . September 29, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170928234037/http://www.politico.com/story/2017/09/28/tom-price-military-jets-europe-asia-hhs-243276 . September 28, 2017 . live.
22. News: Price out as HHS secretary after private plane scandal. Producer. Kevin Liptak, CNN White House. CNN. September 29, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170930040045/http://www.cnn.com/2017/09/29/politics/tom-price-resigns/index.html?adkey=bn. September 30, 2017. live.
23. News: Facher. Lev. HHS communications head to depart for job at White House drug office. Stat . February 16, 2018 . April 13, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180414091513/https://www.statnews.com/2018/02/16/yoest-ondcp-departure/. April 14, 2018. live.
24. News: Budryk. Zack. Trump names Caputo to HHS top communications role. The Hill. April 15, 2020.
25. News: Gregorian. Dareh. Top HHS official takes leave of absence after Facebook rant about CDC conspiracies. NBC News. September 16, 2020.
26. Web site: Statement from the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use. 2021-01-08. www.samhsa.gov. 7 January 2021 . en.
27. News: Kaczynski. Andrew . Andrew Kaczynski . HHS official who made anti-Muslim comments and spread conspiracy theories resigns. CNN. July 28, 2018. July 28, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180728183558/https://www.cnn.com/2018/07/28/politics/hhs-official-barreto-resigns/index.html. July 28, 2018. live.
28. News: CDC head resigns after report she traded tobacco stocks. Hellmann. Jessie. January 31, 2018. The Hill. January 31, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180131155440/http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/371592-cdc-head-resigns-after-report-she-traded-tobacco-stocks. January 31, 2018. live.
29. Web site: Past CDC Directors/Administrators. Office of Enterprise Communication. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). February 19, 2009. May 19, 2009. https://web.archive.org/web/20090506065546/http://www.cdc.gov/about/history/pastdirectors.htm. May 6, 2009. live.
30. News: CDC's chief of staff, deputy chief of staff jointly depart. Diamond. Dan. August 14, 2020. Politico. August 17, 2020.
31. News: FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb resigns. Alltucker. Ken. O'Donnell. Jayne. March 5, 2019. USA Today. March 5, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190306002835/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2019/03/05/fda-commissioner-scott-gottlieb-resigns-food-drug-administration/3069901002/. March 6, 2019. live.
32. News: READ: Statement from leader of federal vaccine agency about his reassignment. CNN. April 22, 2020.
33. News: Ex-pandemic preparedness chief resigns from federal government. Jeremy. Diamond. Paul. LeBlanc. CNN. October 6, 2020.
34. News: DLA Piper Taps Former HHS Official for Chief Administrative Role . Tribe . Meghan . . January 21, 2020 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20200803100026/https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/dla-piper-taps-former-hhs-official-for-chief-administrative-role . August 3, 2020.
35. Web site: Joanne M. Chiedi . May 2, 2020 . oig.hhs.gov . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20200803090111/https://oig.hhs.gov/about-oig/about-us/leadership/chiedi.pdf . August 3, 2020.