Trump signs executive order to boost women’s health research and care
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump signed an executive order on Oct. 19, 2026 that creates a White House Women’s Health Task Force and a new Women’s Health Division within the National Institutes of Health.
The order, titled “Advancing Women’s Health to Improve Outcomes in All Phases of Life,” directs the federal government to pursue a comprehensive approach to women’s health, covering infancy, adolescence, pregnancy, midlife, menopause and aging. It also mandates policy and regulatory reforms aimed at timely, stage‑specific prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care.
Melania Trump called the move “a transformative moment for women in America,” saying, “Now is the time… Beginning today, we will change the reality of women’s health.” President Trump echoed the sentiment, declaring the action historic and crediting his wife for the initiative.
Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff who recently survived breast cancer, will co‑chair the task force with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The task force will meet for its first session in the Roosevelt Room on the afternoon of Oct. 19.
Key priorities outlined by Melania include five pillars of innovation: directing research funding toward diseases that uniquely affect women; using artificial intelligence to accelerate understanding of female biology; speeding the translation of promising therapies from labs to patients; ensuring affordability of breakthroughs; and fostering open conversation and education about women’s health.
The order also instructs the NIH director to establish a Women’s Health Division to coordinate research and speed translation of discoveries into clinical practice. Current NIH spending on women’s health research is roughly 10 % of its budget, about $5 billion, though the order does not specify future funding levels.
Administration officials highlighted several focus areas, including cancer, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, cardiovascular conditions, autoimmune disorders, mental health, endometriosis, infertility, menopause and maternal health. The task force is expected to collaborate with the private sector to develop new technologies and solutions that help women thrive rather than merely survive.
The initiative comes as the 2026 midterm elections approach, with Republicans seeking to maintain control of Congress. Recent polls show President Trump’s approval among women at 29 %, a factor that may influence the political calculus behind the policy push.
In addition to the health agenda, the order revokes a similar 2024 directive from the prior administration that emphasized health disparities affecting women of different races and socioeconomic status.
The administration says the task force will release its first set of recommendations later this year, aiming to translate research advances into tangible improvements for women across the nation.
