1. United States
2. Pa.
3. Letter

**Oppose Casey Means' Confirmation as U.S. Surgeon General** I am writing as a physician to urge you to oppose the confirmation of Casey Means as U.S. Surgeon General during Wednesday's Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing. This nomination sets a dangerous precedent that undermines the integrity of our nation's highest public health office. Means does not hold an active medical license, which lapsed in January 2024. She left her surgical residency at Oregon Health and Science University in 2018, just months before completion, and has never practiced medicine as a fully trained physician. If confirmed, she would oversee the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, which requires its officers to maintain active licenses in their respective fields. How can we expect the Surgeon General to enforce standards she herself does not meet? The position of Surgeon General requires someone with clinical experience who understands the realities of patient care. Instead, Means has spent recent years selling dietary supplements and wellness products on social media. A review by Public Citizen found she failed to consistently disclose when she could profit from product sales. She co-founded Levels, a company selling wearable glucose monitors, raising serious conflict of interest concerns given Secretary Kennedy's endorsement of similar devices. Most troubling are her scientifically unfounded claims. Means has written that hormonal birth control has "horrifying health risks" and that the vaccine schedule is "causing health declines in vulnerable children." Neither statement is supported by evidence. Routine childhood vaccinations are backed by decades of safety data, and serious complications from hormonal birth control are rare. These positions align with Secretary Kennedy's anti-vaccine activism, which has already contributed to slashed funding for mRNA research and downplayed vaccination during an unprecedented measles outbreak. America's top doctor must be a practicing physician with clinical expertise and commitment to evidence-based medicine. I urge you to vote against this confirmation and demand a nominee who meets basic professional standards for this critical position.