Surgeon general hearing postponed after nominee goes into labor

Surgeon general nominee Casey Means' confirmation hearing has been postponed after she went into labor, a Senate health committee spokesperson said.

Why it matters: The Thursday morning hearing was expected to reopen battle lines over Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his "Make America Healthy Again" movement.

Driving the news: The nutrition influencer had been set to appear virtually because she was pregnant. The committee got word this morning that she is in labor.

• Means was trained as a physician at Stanford before dropping out of her residency program to focus on root causes of disease.
• She brings a focus on chronic disease, but also controversial doubts about vaccines.
• President Trump picked Means in May after withdrawing the nomination of Janette Nesheiwat.

"Everyone is happy for Dr. Means and her family," HHS spokesperson Emily Hilliard said. "This is one of the few times in life when it's easy to ask to move a Senate hearing."