Two days into the Trump administration, several webpages covering diversity in clinical trials, annual medical device reports and LGBTQ+ information were removed from the Food and Drug Administration’s website. It’s not clear if the changes are temporary or if the pages will be restored.
When asked about the removed webpages, an FDA spokesperson directed MedTech Dive to contact the Department of Health and Human Services. The HHS did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
“It is definitely not typical,” said Diana Zuckerman, president of the National Center for Health Research. “From one administration to another, certain things are reviewed and taken down. I don’t think ever [in] the first week of the administration.”
Other federal websites have scrubbed pages on diversity, equity and inclusion; mentions of the acronym LGBTQ+; federal policies on people with disabilities and abortion search results, according to reporting by Politico, NBC News, the Washington Post and NPR. The Trump administration has also frozen health research grants, according to STAT News.
Some of the removed FDA pages related to efforts around diversity, gender and health equity.
“Surely there’s someone who’s knowledgeable enough about science to understand the importance of diversity in clinical trials,” Zuckerman said of the Trump administration.
A recent draft guidance from the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health providing recommendations for medical device sponsors to consider sex- and gender-specific data in clinical studies was removed. The guidance was released on Jan. 6, and the page was last archived to the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine on Jan. 14. As of Monday, the guidance was available through the Federal Register’s website.
Last week, President Donald Trump issued a raft of executive orders targeting DEI programs. One order called for the removal of federal DEI mandates, policies, programs, preferences and activities “under whatever name they appear.” Trump also issued an order stating that official U.S. policy recognizes two sexes as assigned at birth, male or female. The order contradicts medical groups, including the American Medical Association, that recognize sex and gender identity as a spectrum.
Although guidances are not legally enforceable, “it is troubling that this is happening,” said Michael Abrams, a senior health researcher at consumer advocacy nonprofit Public Citizen.
Most of the information in the guidance was “common sense,” said Madris Kinard, CEO of Device Events, a company that tracks the FDA’s adverse event reports and recalls.
“This is research on making sure you include the right populations that are relevant to the device that you’re approving or clearing,” Kinard added.
Several of the CDRH’s annual reports were also pulled from the center’s site Wednesday afternoon. CDRH released and posted its 2024 report Jan. 17.
Meanwhile, Dorothy Fink, the HHS’ acting secretary, ordered a pause on Jan. 21 on communications from health agencies, according to the Associated Press.
“We count on the HHS especially to be transparent and a scientific voice so doctors and patients are informed about emerging and existing prevailing health trends,” Public Citizen’s Abrams said.
A page on increasing clinical trial participation for the LGBTQ+ community was removed as of Monday. It was last archived on Jan. 18.
Sarah Kate Ellis, CEO of the LGBTQ+ advocacy group GLAAD, said in an emailed statement on the removal of federal LGBTQ+ pages; “This action proves the Trump administration’s goal of making it as difficult as possible for LGBTQ Americans to find federal resources or otherwise see ourselves reflected under his presidency. Sadly for him, our community is more visible than ever; and this pathetic attempt to diminish and remove us will again prove unsuccessful.”
A page for the CDRH’s Health of Women Program was also removed as of Monday. It was last archived on Dec. 24, 2024. The program was started in 2016 to address sex- and gender-specific issues in medical technology design and performance.
Eileen Barrett, a hospitalist and president-elect of the American Medical Women’s Association, said having women and LGBTQ+ people represented in clinical trials “should be apolitical.”
“Nobody wants the patients to get worse care because we aren’t acknowledging the entire context in which they’re experiencing their health and also the way they experience healthcare delivery,” Barrett said.
Webpages were also down on the CDRH’s recent Home as a Health Care Hub initiative, including an announcement for the program and a listening session the agency held last year. The program was launched in April by Michelle Tarver, who was named CDRH director in October. The program is intended to provide resources for devices to be designed with a home environment in mind, starting with a focus on diabetes.
“The pages being down is the manifestation of a broader concern which is the interference of politics with the study and the practice of science, and the study and the practice of medicine, and in the relationship between physicians and other clinicians with patients."
Eileen Barrett
President-elect of the American Medical Women’s Association
Another removed page referenced a virtual public meeting on real-world evidence slated for Jan. 30.
“The pages being down is the manifestation of a broader concern which is the interference of politics with the study and the practice of science, and the study and the practice of medicine, and in the relationship between physicians and other clinicians with patients," Barrett said.
The removal of webpages, which MedTech Dive began tracking on Wednesday, appears to have happened while the position of FDA commissioner was vacant. A confirmation date has not yet been set for nominee Marty Makary. Sara Brenner, a CDRH official, is now acting FDA commissioner, according to an update to the agency’s website.
The FDA declined to comment on the nomination, citing a communications pause by the HHS. The FDA said the “short pause” is to “allow the new team to set up a process for review and prioritization” and does not apply to communications that are emergencies or critical to preserving health.
Zuckerman said the communications blackout makes a “bad impression,” raising questions about whether the public will be notified about important recalls or product approvals.
“I think there's so much that needs to improve with transparency, and I see things going backwards,” Device Events’ Kinard added
