Senator Murray: “You called for you called birth control pills a quote ‘disrespect of life,’ and said Americans quote ‘use birth control pills like candy.’ You also claimed—contrary to established science—that hormonal birth control has quote ‘horrifying health risks’ for women.”
***VIDEO of Senator Murray’s Q&A HERE ***
Washington, D.C. — Today, at a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee hearing, the committee considered the nomination of Casey Means for Medical Director in the Regular Corps of the Public Health Service and Surgeon General of the Public Health Service. U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA)—a former chair and senior member of the HELP Committee—grilled President Trump’s unqualified nominee on her concerning and harmful claims regarding the safety of birth control and pressed her on whether she would call out misleading claims on vaccines for infants and antidepressants for pregnant women.
In 2018, Means dropped out of her surgical residency and in 2019, she started a functional medicine practice where she treated patients without an active medical license until 2021. A close ally of RFK Jr., Means provides unconventional wellness advice on social media and in her newsletter where she earns money promoting dozens of supplements and health technologies.
[BIRTH CONTROL]
Senator Murray began her questioning by pressing Means on her harmful and misleading statements about birth control, noting that Dr. Means has called birth control pills “a disrespect of life,” claimed Americans “use birth control pills like candy,” and asserted that hormonal birth control carries “horrifying health risks” for women. Senator Murray underscored that there are 18 FDA-approved contraceptive methods, both hormonal and non-hormonal, backed by decades of evidence showing they are safe and effective, and stressed that millions of women rely on birth control every day and deserve clear, evidence-based guidance from public health leaders. Senator Murray said: “Thank you Dr. Means for being here, let me start with this. You called birth control pills, and I’m going to quote a ‘disrespect of life,’ and said Americans quote ‘use birth control pills like candy.’ You also claimed—contrary to established science—that hormonal birth control has quote ‘horrifying health risks’ for women. Now here are the facts: there are 18 FDA-approved contraceptive methods—both hormonal and non-hormonal—and there are decades, decades, of evidence showing that every one of these birth control methods is safe and effective.”
“So, I wanted to ask you, help me understand, should women trust the FDA which approved all 18 methods of birth control after a very rigorous look at the evidence, or should they trust your statement that there are ‘horrifying health risks’ to birth control—which contradicts that evidence?” asked Senator Murray.
“Thank you, Senator Murray, for your question. I’m curious if you’re aware of what the side effects of hormonal contraception are?” Means replied.
Senator Murray pushed back, “I’m curious if you are with the FDA that went through all of these and rigorously looked at them, or as Surgeon General if you’re going to tell the truth to the American people?”
“I absolutely believe that these medications should be accessible to all women, and also, all medications have risks and benefits. And in our current medical climate, with the burden on doctors, doctors do not have enough time for thorough informed consent conversations. Some of the horrifying side effects of birth control that I have mentioned include blood clots and stroke risk in women who have clotting disorders, who are smokers, who have obesity–” replied Means.
“So, is it general?” asked Senator Murray.
“No, it’s not in general, I am very careful with my words and when I say those comments, which are taken out of context, I am speaking about particular women that can be hurt if there is not informed consent about their medical history, their lifestyle exposures, and their family history. I want those women, and I know you do too, to be able to have a thorough conversation with their doctor and know whether they are higher risk for side effects when prescribed the medication,” responded Means.
“Saying that is one thing, but saying on, you know, different shows that ‘birth control pills are a disrespect of life’ is very different,” said Senator Murray.
“I am passionate about women’s health, and I think it is disrespectful to women–” replied Means.
“Saying that people ‘use birth control pills like candy’ is very different than what you just said,” said Senator Murray.
“We prescribe a huge amount of hormonal contraceptive, and I do not believe most of those conversations have informed consent because of the pressures that doctors are under because of our broken health care system. I want what’s best for women as do you–and I want every woman who could be at risk for a side effect to know if a woman died because of a stroke or a blood clot because they did not have a thorough conversation–” said Means
“Dr. Means, I just have two minutes left and I have other questions. Let me move on. Thank you,” responded Senator Murray.
[MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH]
Senator Murray continued her questioning by pressing Means on key maternal and child health issues, including vaccine safety, infant health, and maternal mental health. She raised concerns about recent comments from FDA official Tracy Beth Hoeg casting doubt on the safety of RSV vaccines for infants and questioning the safety of antidepressants, including SSRIs, during pregnancy. Senator Murray stressed that the Surgeon General must provide accurate, evidence-based public health information and pressed Dr. Means’ ability to do so: “Tracy Beth Høeg, she’s an anti-vaccine skeptic, she was elevated by the Trump administration to serve as the top drug regulator at FDA. She made comments last week casting doubt on the safety of RSV vaccines for [babies]. As I’m sure you know, RSV can be deadly, even for healthy, full-term infants. Do you believe that Dr. Høeg is wrong to question the safety of RSV vaccines?” asked Senator Murray.
“I have not read that article or seen that quote. I would need to know what she said before I commented on that,” Means answered.
Senator Murray replied, “Well, you do know that RSV is the leading cause of hospitalization for infants?”
Means replied, “I do, I have a seventeen-week-old and I am very aware of that.”
“Do you hear her statement, as Surgeon General, would you contradict it?” Senator Murray asked.
“I certainly have absolutely no issue having very frank conversations with anyone in the administration if I believe that their statements are misguided in some way or not fully informed. That’s not a conversation I would have publicly first; I would have a private and direct conversation with anyone in the administration if I felt that patients were at risk because of views,” Means replied.
“I also want to ask you about maternal health. Mental health conditions are the leading cause of maternal death in the U.S., including suicide and overdose deaths. In her comments last week, Dr. Høeg, same woman, also expressed concern about the safety of the anti-depressants during pregnancy. Specifically, she called out SSRIs, the most commonly prescribed type, do you believe that SSRIs are dangerous for pregnant women?” Senator Murray continued.
“I don’t want to be a broken record here, but I do believe that every medication has risks and benefits and you need to have a nuanced conversation with your doctor before starting a medication. That is, I think, the most responsible position for any doctor to share,” Means answered.
“Well strong evidence has shown that SSRIs are safe in pregnancy, most do not increase the risk of birth defects, but untreated depression in pregnancy puts women at risk,” Senator Murray replied.
“Certainly, and I agree with you, but I still think a patient – I don’t think it’s responsible to make a blanket statement for all Americans,” Means responded.
“Okay, well, if confirmed as Surgeon General, it will be your job to give accurate and up-to-date public health information to the American people. I assume you will take that responsibility seriously,” Senator Murray concluded.
“I will, and I absolutely do. And I also believe that the American people are looking for a more nuanced conversation about health, and I believe that that will help restore trust in public health,” Means said.
Senator Murray, a longtime congressional leader on health care and public health issues, has been consistently holding Trump’s Department of Health and Human Services accountable. Murray has been a leader in raising the alarm over RFK Jr.’s nomination and handling of HHS since the beginning—speaking out on the Senate floor, holding numerous events, raising the alarm after meeting with him, and hammering the threat he poses to Americans’ health nonstop.
She spoke out forcefully against RFK Jr.’s ousting of the entire ACIP panel, including one ACIP member from Washington state. Senator Murray has held countless events across Washington state and in Washington, D.C. with doctors, patients, and former HHS officials to lift up how Trump and Republicans’ attacks on health care will be devastating for families. In early September, Senator Murray took to the Senate floor to reiterate her call for RFK Jr. to be fired after he pushed former CDC Director Susan Monarez out of her job for refusing to rubber-stamp vaccine recommendations without evidence.
On September 8th, Senator Murray called on Chairman Cassidy to compel RFK Jr. to testify publicly before the HELP Committee. At the September 17th HELP Committee hearing with former CDC Director Susan Monarez and former CDC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Deb Houry, Senator Murray pressed both witnesses on whether they would feel confident telling parents to trust ACIP’s vaccine recommendations now, after RFK Jr. purged the entire panel of experts and replaced them with unqualified anti-vaccine skeptics—Former CDC Director Monarez replied that she would be “very nervous” to tell parents to trust any recommendations coming from the new ACIP panel. Senator Murray also requested in September an independent, comprehensive Inspector General review by the HHS Acting Inspector General of recent actions taken at HHS to limit access to vaccines, and recent personnel changes at the CDC. In December, she spoke out against ACIP’s vote to end the recommendation of vaccinating all newborns for hepatitis B at birth, without any new evidence prompting the change. Murray continues to press Republican leadership to compel RFK Jr. to answer publicly before the HELP Committee for his nonstop assault on America’s public health infrastructure.
Senator Murray is a longtime leader in the fight to protect and expand access to reproductive health care. Over the course of her career, Senator Murray has fought to ensure widespread access to affordable birth control. She leads the Access to Birth Control Act, which would guarantee patients’ timely access to birth control at pharmacies nationwide—including by addressing pharmacists’ refusals to dispense contraception that prevent patients from obtaining their preferred form of birth control. She also pushed to ensure birth control was covered under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and led the fight against the Supreme Court’s Hobby Lobby ruling. Senator Murray is widely credited with leading the fight to make Plan B available over the counter.
As a leading Congressional champion of efforts to expand maternal health care and improve access to care for pregnant women, Senator Murray introduced the Healthy Maternal and Obstetric Medicine (MOM) Act, which would ensure that all women eligible for coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) insurance marketplaces, as well as women eligible for other individual or group health plan coverage, can access affordable health care coverage throughout their pregnancies. The bill would establish a special enrollment period (SEP) for expectant mothers. Currently, marriage, divorce, having a baby, adoption, and changing jobs are considered qualifying life events that trigger a special enrollment period; however, becoming pregnant is not considered a qualifying event. The Healthy MOM Act would change that.
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