WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Monday directed the federal government to bolster federal research into women's health, a move pushed by his wife, first lady Melania Trump.
The Republican president signed an executive order that creates a new women’s health division at the National Institutes of Health and a White House task force to focus on the issue. That panel was set to hold its first meeting Monday after the Trumps held a Rose Garden signing ceremony.
"Beginning today we will change the reality of women's health," Melania Trump said. "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."
The president, who spoke after his wife, said the order will “promote new research and really go after the understudied diseases affecting women.” The order is also intended to promote diagnostic technology and improve treatment.
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 White House task force. Donald Trump said the task force will coordinate with various federal agencies and programs. The order does not include specific funding goals.
The initiative comes after a series of meetings the first lady had with federal health officials.
The president called it a "historic action” and praised the first lady's work.
"She's accomplished so much," he said before pivoting into unscripted commentary on White House renovations, including the patio stone that now covers what was once the Rose Garden lawn.
Shifting back to women's health, the president expressed surprise that some of the order's requirements had not already been imposed.
“Who the hell wouldn't have a women's health division?” he said, after recalling that he'd asked Melania Trump, “Are you sure they don't have that?”
The executive order calls for targeting maternal health, mental health and endometriosis. It also mentions other health concerns and diseases, including Alzheimer's, osteoporosis, heart disease and stroke.
Melania Trump helped shape the order and the task force in consultation with physicians, White House officials, Kennedy and the Republican president. The initiative adds a new dimension to her policy portfolio as first lady.
In Donald Trump's second term, the first lady has focused on improving foster care systems and expanding technology and artificial-intelligence access in education. In Trump's first presidency, the first lady's signature initiative, Be Best, focused on child well-being, safe social media use and reducing drug abuse.
The White House ceremony comes weeks before Nov. 3 elections and as Donald Trump's job approval ratings have declined, including among women.
About 4 in 10 independent women supported Trump during the 2024 election against Democrat Kamala Harris and in the pre-presidency period, according to AP-NORC polls. That dropped to around a quarter in the opening months of this midterm election year, the period marked by Trump's hard-line immigration crackdown in U.S. cities and the opening weeks of the Iran war.