Trump Creates Women's Health Division at NIH
U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on October 19, 2026, establishing a dedicated women's health division within the National Institutes of Health and a White House task force on women's health. Al Jazeera
The White House titled the action "Advancing Women's Health to Improve Outcomes in All Phases of Life" and lists it as an executive order dated October 19, 2026. White House The signing took place in Washington on Monday, October 19, 2026.
First Lady Melania Trump championed the action as a "transformative moment" for U.S. women's health. At the ceremony, she said the initiative sets "a new standard for women's health in America."
The project spearheaded by Melania Trump requires the new division to be established within 90 days. According to the White House, it will not replace the agency's Office of Research on Women's Health and will have a broader mandate beyond research.
The order states the Women's Health Division shall work with federal partners to expand coordination and policy leadership. The exact language says the division shall work "with all relevant federal partners to expand strategic coordination and policy leadership."
The White House task force will be co-chaired by White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The order directs HHS to fund the administrative costs of the task force. It includes no specific funding targets or dollar amounts.
The first lady's office identified five pillars for women's health innovation. They include funding targeted research for diseases affecting women such as endometriosis. Another pillar calls for a quicker timeline for promising therapeutics to reach female patients.
The announcement follows recent reductions and disputes around women's health research funding. The NIH was given a deadline to slash spending by 35 percent across all divisions, amounting to a $2.6 billion budget reduction. In April 2025, HHS moved to terminate regional contracts for the Women's Health Initiative, drawing condemnation and a multi-state lawsuit.
