18 Months of Action: President Trump, Secretary Kennedy Deliver Historic Reforms to Make America Healthy Again

WASHINGTON, D.C. - AUGUST 21, 2026 - In just 555 days, President Donald J. Trump and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. have delivered sweeping changes across American health policy - strengthening prevention, restoring accountability and transparency, and delivering better results for the American people.

"President Trump gave us a clear mission: end the chronic disease epidemic and Make America Healthy Again." said Secretary Kennedy. "We are challenging the assumptions and incentives that have failed our country and building a system that prioritizes prevention, empowers Americans to make informed choices, and demands results. We have changed the trajectory of American health, and we are just getting started."

Under President Trump and Secretary Kennedy's leadership, HHS has delivered hundreds of landmark reforms and victories for the American people - from food and nutrition and chronic disease prevention to healthcare, scientific research, and environmental health. Together, these actions are transforming how the federal government serves the American people and driving lasting change for generations to come.

A comprehensive list of MAHA accomplishments is available at whitehouse.gov/maha and will be updated as President Trump, Secretary Kennedy, and the entire Trump Administration continue taking action to Make America Healthy Again.

The MAHA Commission & Strategy

Immediately after Secretary Kennedy was sworn into office in February 2025 in the Oval Office, President Trump signed the Executive Order Establishing the President's Make America Healthy Again Commission to investigate and address the root causes of America's escalating health crisis, with a focus on childhood chronic disease.

In turn, the MAHA Commission, an unprecedented all-of-government collaboration that included all Cabinet Secretaries, released the Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy, a sweeping list of more than 120 policy recommendations to reverse the failed policies that fueled America's childhood chronic disease epidemic and improve public health.

Real Food Wins, Removing Artificial Food Dyes

HHS delivered a historic reset of federal nutrition policy with the release of the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans and a simple message: Eat Real Food. The new Guidelines put whole, nutrient-dense foods back at the center of the American diet. They prioritize protein, dairy, vegetables, fruits, healthy fats, and whole grains while calling for sharp reductions in refined carbohydrates and limiting highly processed foods, added sugars, and artificial additives. The new Food Pyramid reinforces this shift, with guidelines rooted in nutrition - not the special interests of corporate America.

Beginning in April 2025, HHS, through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), announced a series of new measures to phase out all petroleum-based synthetic dyes from the nation's food supply.

As a result of Secretary Kennedy's leadership, 27 of the largest food companies in America have announced plans to remove artificial food dyes from their products. Additionally, 38 states have introduced or enacted legislation to restrict synthetic food dyes and other food additives in publicly funded programs.

Closing the GRAS Loophole & Winning the War on Ultra-Processed Food

In August 2026, Secretary Kennedy announced two landmark actions to modernize federal oversight of food ingredients and establish a stronger scientific foundation for future nutrition policy.

First, HHS proposed a rule requiring manufacturers to notify the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) when concluding that the use of a substance added to human or animal food is Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS).

Second, alongside the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), HHS submitted for final review the federal government's first proposed definition of ultra-processed foods.

Record-Low Prescription Prices, Affordable Healthcare

For decades, other nations were free-riding on American pharmaceutical innovation, while America overpaid for prescription medication - medications developed in America, by Americans. Americans were paying up to 300% more than other countries for the same drugs, made in the same factories, in the same packaging.

President Trump and Secretary Kennedy made lowering prescription drug prices a key pillar of the Great Healthcare Plan and TrumpRx is helping make this plan a reality by delivering Most Favored Nation drug pricing to the American people.

Already, TrumpRx has saved Americans over $700 million in prescription drug costs. Prescription drug prices have plummeted at their fastest rate in more than 60 years.

Now, over 800 prescription drugs - including brand-name and generic drugs, and drugs manufactured by the 17 largest pharmaceutical companies - are available through TrumpRx.

TrumpRx is strengthening prescription drug supply chains, bringing back jobs, and making life more affordable for Americans.

In June 2025, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announced new steps to lower out-of-pocket costs for life-saving medications. HRSA-funded health centers are now required to provide insulin and injectable epinephrine to low-income patients at or below the price paid by the center through the 340B Drug Pricing Program. This action aims to improve access and affordability for two vital medications used in emergency and chronic care.

Additionally, in September 2025, HHS announced a regulatory breakthrough giving doctors and patients real-time access to prescription drug information. Millions of Americans can now compare drug prices, view out-of-pocket costs and access authorization requirements. Healthcare providers can also identify lower-cost alternatives available under a patient's insurance coverage.

Additional wins include:

Restoring Gold-Standard Science

On August 10, President Trump signed an Executive Order Delivering Gold-Standard Childhood Vaccine Recommendations for Americans expanding on that work to emphasize informed consent and parental choice, and align three categories of childhood immunizations with scientific evidence and best practices from peer, developed countries.

The Task Force on Safer Childhood Vaccines was established by Congress in 1986 but went dormant in 1998. Last year, after nearly three decades, the Trump Administration reinstated it and restored that congressional mandate.

The Task Force is already working to expand vaccine options, examine the timing and sequencing of childhood vaccines, strengthen safety monitoring, advance research into alternative adjuvants, and continuously evaluate risks and benefits using American and international evidence.

In August 2025, HHS announced additional repeals of federal policy that financially rewarded hospitals for reporting staff vaccination rates - a coercive incentive that denied informed consent.

The policy, established under the Biden Administration's CMS inpatient payment rule, tied hospital reimbursement to staff vaccination reporting. The data was published on CDC's National Healthcare Safety Network as a tool for public shaming, not public health.
Secretary Kennedy sent a loud and clear message: Medical decisions should be made based on one thing: the well-being of the person - never on a financial bonus or government mandate.

Additional wins include:

Ending COVID Insanity, Stopping Dangerous Gain-of-Function Research

Secretary Kennedy terminated the COVID-19 Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) declarations for drugs and biological products and for medical devices, concluding that the circumstances that justified these emergency authorities no longer exist.

In July, the Trump Administration released a comprehensive framework to prohibit federally supported dangerous gain-of-function (DGOF) research while establishing stronger oversight for life sciences research that could pose significant risks to public health, biosecurity, or national security.

The policy fulfills President Trump's Executive Order Improving the Safety and Security of Biological Research and it ensures that taxpayer-funded research advances scientific discovery and medical innovation without exposing Americans to unnecessary risk.

Historic Nutrition Education Reforms

HHS secured commitments from 76 universities across 36 states to provide more than 40 hours of nutrition education in medical training, helping ensure future doctors are better equipped to address nutrition and diet-related disease.

Building on these commitments, eight leading medical accrediting, testing, and board organizations committed to embedding measurable nutrition education across core medical training, advancing nutrition as a fundamental part of medical education.

Make Hospital Food Healthier Pledge

In July, Secretary Kennedy and CMS Administrator Dr. Oz released the "Make Hospital Food Healthier Pledge," transforming the role of nutrition in America's hospitals by making healthier food part of patient care. This initiative calls on hospitals to limit ultra-processed foods and sugar-sweetened beverages, eliminate deep-frying, and improve the nutritional quality of meals served to patients and staff. The Pledge extends this commitment beyond the hospital by promoting nutrition education and resources that empower patients to maintain healthier eating habits after discharge.

Cracking Down on Waste Fraud and Abuse

President Trump gave Secretary Kennedy a clear mandate to end waste, fraud, and abuse - and the Secretary is delivering.

HHS alone has uncovered nearly $100 billion in fraud. HHS has saved more than $46.1 billion and clawed back $30.5 billion.

Last month, Secretary Kennedy, CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz, and the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud announced a pause of more than $1 billion in federal Medicaid payments to California and Minnesota over suspected fraud and noncompliance.

President Trump and Secretary Kennedy will not rest until faith has been restored in America's social safety net.

Additional wins include:

Ending Taxpayer Funding of Sex-Rejecting Procedures, Stopping Radical Gender Ideology

In December 2025, HHS and CMS announced a series of proposed regulatory actions to carry out President Trump's Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation, directing HHS to end the practice of funding sex-rejecting procedures on children that expose young people to irreversible harm.

In August, HHS and CMS announced that the Trump Administration had formally ended federal taxpayer funding for sex-rejecting procedures on children - Medicaid and CHIP dollars can no longer be used to fund procedures that fail to meet the evidentiary standard America's children deserve.

HHS also published Treatment for Pediatric Gender Dysphoria: Review of Evidence and Best Practices, a peer-reviewed study of the medical dangers posed to children from sex-rejecting procedures.

The report, released through the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, finds that the harms from sex-rejecting interventions - including puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgical operations - are significant, long term, and too often ignored or inadequately tracked.

Restoring American Excellence: The Presidential Fitness Test & GetActive.gov

More than 60 years ago, Secretary Kennedy's uncle, President John F. Kennedy, challenged America to make physical fitness a national priority because he understood that the strength of our nation begins with the health of our people. In 2026, President Trump restored that vision.

By bringing back the Presidential Fitness Test and launching GetActive.gov, the Trump Administration is giving parents, schools, and communities the tools to help children build healthy habits, strengthen their bodies, and discover what they're capable of achieving.

Igniting The Great American Recovery

In January, President Trump signed an Executive Order Addressing Addiction through the Great American Recovery Initiative to coordinate a national response to the chronic disease of addiction across government, healthcare, faith communities, tribal nations, the private sector, philanthropic organizations, and people with lived experience in order to save lives, restore families, strengthen communities, and make America's streets safer.

Thanks to President Trump, Secretary Kennedy, and Co-Chair Kathryn Burgum's leadership on the Great American Recovery Initiative, HHS is recognizing addiction as a chronic, life-long, relapsing brain disease. Like other chronic diseases, addiction requires evidence-based care, continuous support, and long-term management. Recovery should be expected, supported, and celebrated.

The Great American Recovery is shifting federal funding to a value-based care model that rewards lasting results. Under President Trump, the government will invest in programs and policies that support recovery, long-term stability, and overall health.

Recovery - not treatment alone - is now the measure of success.

HHS has already announced more than $1 billion in funding opportunities to advance The Great American Recovery. The centerpiece of this plan is a $100 million investment to solve long-standing homelessness issues, fight opioid addiction, and improve public safety by expanding treatment that emphasizes recovery and self-sufficiency.

The Safety Through Recovery, Engagement, and Evidence-based Treatment and Supports (STREETS) initiative is expected to fund targeted outreach, psychiatric care, medical stabilization and crisis intervention, while connecting Americans experiencing homelessness and addiction to stable housing with a clear focus on long-term recovery and independence.

In August, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) added new peer support programs to the Title-IV Prevention Services Clearinghouse for which all states can now claim federal reimbursement.

The expansion advances the Trump Administration's Great American Recovery and First Lady Melania Trump's A Home for Every Child initiatives by equipping states with evidence-based resources to help parents overcome addiction, thereby strengthening families and reducing the number of children entering foster care.

Empowering Parents, Protecting Children

On Mother's Day of this year, HHS launched Moms.gov, a groundbreaking website for new and expecting mothers. This first-of-its-kind resource offers guidance and information to support the health and well-being of mothers and their families.

Moms.gov also supports expecting parents who are navigating difficult or unexpected pregnancies. It features information about pregnancy centers, Federally Qualified Health centers, nutrition quick facts for mothers based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, Trump Accounts, TrumpRx, resources for women and parents, preconception health, breastfeeding, mental health, and adoption.

In March 2025, HHS and FDA launched Operation Stork Speed to strengthen the safety, nutritional adequacy, and resilience of America's infant formula supply. For the first time since 1998, FDA launched a comprehensive review of infant formula nutrients, increased testing for heavy metals and other contaminants, and took steps to improve transparency and clearer labeling for parents.

Children and adolescents now spend as much or more time on screens as they do sleeping or in school. In turn, depression, suicide, chronic disease, and other negative trends are skyrocketing among the nation's children. In June, the HHS Office of the Surgeon General released the Surgeon General's Warning on the Harms of Screen Use: An Advisory and Toolkit on How to Protect Children and Adolescents to raise national awareness about the growing risks associated with excessive screen use among young people.

After President Biden oversaw thelargest decline in Head Start slots in the program's history, President and Secretary Kennedy were determined to restore the program to the vision of the secretary's uncle Sarge Shriver when he founded the program 61 years ago.

In August, HHS proposed a new rule based on cutting red tape, empowering states, and putting Head Start parents in the driver's seat of their child's education - while expanding the program and adding programs emphasizing nutrition and physical fitness.

The proposed rule - the largest known reinvestment in Head Start's history - will preserve or expand as many as 236,000 Head Start slots nationwide and save taxpayers $2.2 billion.
In January, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced a new policy ending the use of human fetal tissue in NIH-supported research, marking a significant milestone in the Trump Administration's efforts to modernize biomedical science and accelerate innovation. NIH funds will no longer be used to support research involving human fetal tissue from elective abortions.

Additional wins include:

A Home for Every Child

In November 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order to modernize America's foster care system and empower young Americans transitioning out of foster care with greater tools, resources, and opportunities to promote lifelong independence and success. In turn, HHS' ACF launched "A Home for Every Child" to increase the ratio of licensed foster homes relative to children in foster care.

By July 2026, every single state joined "A Home for Every Child."

Together with President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump, Secretary Kennedy is driving real results for America's foster children.

Additional wins include:

Historic Funding for Rural Healthcare

Thanks to President Trump's Working Families Tax Cut, all 50 states will receive awards under the Rural Health Transformation Program - a historic $50 billion investment to strengthen and modernize healthcare in rural communities across the country.

In 2026, states received first-year awards from CMS ranging from $147 million to $281 million.

This unprecedented federal investment will help states expand access to care in rural communities, strengthen the rural health workforce, modernize rural facilities and technology, and support innovative models that bring high-quality, dependable care closer to home.

HRSA-funded health centers served more than 32.7 million patients in 2025 - an increase of more than 350,000 patients from 2024 and the highest number of patients served in the Health Center Program's 61-year history.

In August, Secretary Kennedy announced $102 million in New Access Points awards to significantly expand the reach of the Health Center Program. The awards represent the first major expansion of the Health Center Program since the first Trump Administration in 2019, supporting 158 new and existing health centers to establish 415 new sites and expand access to comprehensive primary care for nearly 1 million people nationwide.

Additional wins include:

Global Health Independence & American Leadership

Under President Trump and Secretary Kennedy's leadership, the U.S. is committed to advancing global health in a manner that reflects American interests, scientific integrity, and accountability to the American people.

The Trump Administration has made clear that American taxpayer dollars must support transparent, evidence-based programs that deliver measurable health outcomes.

On his first day back in office, President Trump announced the U.S. would leave the World Health Organization. One year later, Secretary Kennedy and Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the United States' completion of its withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) for reasons including the organization's mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic, its failure to adopt urgently needed reforms, and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member states.

During the yearlong process, the U.S. stopped funding WHO, withdrew all personnel from the organization, and began pivoting activities previously conducted with WHO to direct bilateral engagements with other countries and organizations.

In 2025, President Trump directed Secretary Kennedy and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to engage directly with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, securing meaningful reforms as a contingency of continued U.S. support.

These reforms strengthen vaccine safety, improve public health, and better align Gavi's work with the principles of gold-standard science and transparency.

Additional wins include:

Hospital Price Transparency, Protecting Your Right to Medical Records

In July, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) announced new steps to strengthen the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement™ (TEFCA®), the nationwide network that helps patients and healthcare providers securely share electronic health information.

Under Secretary Kennedy's leadership, use of the TEFCA network has expanded rapidly. In less than one year, the number of health records exchanged through TEFCA has grown from 10 million to more than 1 billion.

Americans deserve secure, timely access to their health records.

HHS is strengthening TEFCA to put patients in control of their health information, improve care coordination, and help ensure health data moves securely where it is needed.

In June, Secretary Kennedy and CMS Administrator Oz announced that CMS identified more than 500 hospitals that are still not complying with the Trump Administration's hospital price transparency requirements. If those hospitals continue to hide prices from patients, HHS will impose every penalty the law allows - including fines of up to $2 million per year for large hospitals - to hold them accountable.

Secretary Kennedy Launches 'The Real Food Show'

In July, Secretary Kennedy announced the launch of The Real Food Show, a new cooking series designed to help Americans prepare healthy, affordable meals using real, everyday ingredients.
More than a cooking show, The Real Food Show is a national initiative that empowers families to make healthy eating practical, approachable, and affordable. Each episode combines simple recipes with the science behind them, translating the newDietary Guidelines for Americans into meals that Americans can prepare in their own kitchens.

Every recipe featured on The Real Food Show uses real, whole-food ingredients; is kid-friendly and easy for families to prepare together; works in a basic home kitchen using everyday equipment; costs less than $5 per serving whenever possible; delivers delicious, practical meals for cooks of every skill level; and aligns with the updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Historic Transparency, Direct Communication to the American People

As part of the Trump Administration's commitment to communicating directly with the American people, HHS has used its social media platforms to amplify President Trump's priorities, highlight HHS initiatives, deliver timely public health information, and advance the President's Make America Healthy Again agenda.

During the Trump Administration's first 500 days, HHS published more than 11,000 social media posts, generating more than 1.6 billion impressions, 834 million video views, and nearly 62 million engagements across its official social media portfolio.

Secretary Kennedy's official social media accounts generated more than 1.2 billion impressions, 529 million video views, and 47 million engagements, serving as the primary driver of overall social media reach and engagement.

@HHSGov and @HHSRapidResponse generated 438 million impressions, 304 million video views, and 14 million engagements, helping deliver timely information on Trump Administration priorities, Department initiatives, and public health topics directly to the public.

The Best Is Yet to Come

Together, these victories are changing the way Americans eat, live, and take control of their health.

Under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Kennedy, HHS will continue to take decisive actions to end the chronic disease epidemic, revitalize public health, restore trust in medicine, and Make America Healthy Again.

A selection of additional wins:

• FDA Takes Steps to Restrict 7-OH Opioid Products Threatening American Consumers
• HHS Secretary Kennedy Secures Pledge from Insurers, Medical Societies, and Providers to Advance National Behavioral Health Quality and Best Practices
• FDA Announces Plan to Phase Out Animal Testing Requirement for Monoclonal Antibodies and Other Drugs
• HHS Secretary Kennedy, CMS Administrator Oz Secure Industry Pledge to Fix Broken Prior Authorization System
• HHS Announces $100M in Pilot Funding Opportunity to Eliminate Hepatitis C
• FDA Requires Major Changes to Opioid Pain Medication Labeling to Emphasize Risks
• HHS Makes Push to Stop Youth Vaping
• HHS Announces Restructuring of its Office for Civil Rights
• U.S. Department of Education Announces Additional Partnerships to Strengthen Coordination for Individuals with Disabilities Programs, Bolster Civil Rights Enforcement
• HHS Administration for Community Living Announces 12 Winning Teams for Phase 1 of the Health at Home Challenge
• HHS Restores Title VI's Promise of Equal Protection for All
• Achieving Efficiency Through State and Local Preparedness
• HHS Provides More Than $1.5 Billion in State and Tribal Opioid Response Grants
• Administration for Community Living Awards $60 Million to Advance Make America Healthy Again Agenda
• HHS Advances Women's Health, Removes Misleading FDA Warnings on Hormone Replacement Therapy
• HHS Successfully Concludes Hantavirus Response Effort; Monitoring Ends with No Positive U.S. Case
• SAMHSA Awards $73.2 Million for Mental Health Treatment and Suicide Prevention Programs
• HHS Expands Oversight of Organ Transplant System with New Surveillance Tool
• ARPA-H Launches Groundbreaking, $144 million Program to Combat Toxic Microplastics in the Human Body
• ASPR Supports Global Ebola Response While Strengthening U.S. Preparedness
• NIH, CMS Partner to Advance Understanding of Autism Through Secure Access to Select Medicare and Medicaid Data
• HHS Announces Crackdown on Health Data Blocking
• WTAS: HHS Decertifies Kentucky Organ Procurement Organization to Protect Patients, Restore Trust
• HHS Launches MAHA Action Plan to Curb Psychiatric Overprescribing
• HHS and VA Partner to Advance Psychedelic Therapies for Veterans
• HHS Unveils Sweeping Plan to Combat Lyme Disease and Advance Treatment
• Operation TrialBlazer to Reform Clinical Trials
• CMS Empowers Patients and Boosts Transparency by Modernizing Hospital Payments
• Federal Rule Takes Aim at Healthcare Bureaucracy, Reducing Dispute Fees, and Boosting Transparency
• ACL Launches Phase 1 of Caregiver AI Prize Competition
• Establishment of The White House Faith Office