Trump to sign order creating NIH women’s health division

President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, creating a Women's Health Division at the National Institutes of Health and a White House Women's Health Task Force. First lady Melania Trump is expected to speak at the Rose Garden ceremony, scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. EDT, about prioritizing research and easing taboos. Susie Wiles, who recently completed treatment for breast cancer, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will lead the task force. The order targets maternal health, mental health, endometriosis, Alzheimer's disease, osteoporosis, heart disease and stroke. It does not set specific funding goals. The new division is described as supplementing, not replacing, NIH's existing Office of Research on Women's Health. Melania Trump said she helped shape the order in consultation with physicians, White House officials, Kennedy and the president. In a statement she said it was abundantly clear that women's healthcare needs to be modernized, the research gap closed, and the need to accelerate treatments and cures was glaring. On X she listed five pillars: research funding, AI and superintelligence for discovery, faster safe treatment access, affordability, and open conversation. The plan was first reported by USA Today. Contested: none found in record. Next is the scheduled Monday signing.