Feb. 21, 2025

President Trump released an Executive Order (EO) establishing the "Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission,”  Feb. 13 to be led by the new Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 

 

The Commission is tasked with “investigating and addressing the root causes of America’s escalating health crisis, with an initial focus on childhood chronic diseases.” The Commission will release the Make Our Children Healthy Again Assessment, covering “what is known and what questions remain regarding the childhood chronic disease crisis, and include international comparisons.” This assessment will inform the Make our Children Healthy Again Strategy which “shall address appropriately restructuring the Federal Government’s response to the childhood chronic disease crisis.” 

The order lays out four main policy directives:

 

  • Empower Americans through transparency and open-source data and avoid conflicts of interest in all federally funded health research.
  • Prioritize gold-standard research on why Americans are getting sick in all health-related research funded by the federal government.
  • Work with farmers to ensure that U.S. food is healthy, abundant and affordable.
  • Ensure expanded treatment options and health coverage flexibility for beneficial lifestyle changes and disease prevention.

 

The American College of Radiology® (ACR®) continues to monitor communications from the White House on this EO and the MAHA Commission.

For more information, contact Katie Grady, ACR Government Affairs Director.

 

Related ACR News

  • CMS Updates ICD-10 Codes for Radiology NCDs

    Change Request 14194 details ICD-10 coding revisions for mammograms, PET for oncologic conditions and percutaneous image-guided breast biopsy.

    Read more
  • House Spending Bill Maintains NIH Funding Levels

    The House FY2026 spending bill maintains NIH funding at $48B, rejecting proposed cuts; ACR continues advocacy for medical research as a national priority.

    Read more
  • Feds Propose Revising Small Business Size Standards

    The SBA released a proposed rule to revise the monetary-based small business size standards for 263 industries, including diagnostic imaging centers.

    Read more