NIH to Launch Women’s Health Division Focused on Understudied Conditions

On Oct. 19, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a new Women’s Health Division within the National Institutes of Health (NIH). HHS has 90 days to set up the division.

The order also creates a White House Women’s Health Task Force, co-chaired by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, to coordinate federal women’s health efforts from childhood through menopause and aging.

What the new division will focus on

According to HHS, the division will support research on conditions that uniquely or disproportionately affect women, including the following:

• Cardiovascular disease
• Cancer
• Autoimmune and inflammatory conditions
• Chronic pain
• Endometriosis
• Fibroids
• Polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS), formerly known as polycystic ovary syndrome
• Infertility and maternal health
• Menopause
• Alzheimer’s disease
• Osteoporosis

The division is also directed to increase the inclusion of women and girls in clinical trials, improve understanding of how health outcomes differ by sex and help translate research findings into clinical care.

“Women deserve strong research that helps them and their doctors answer key health questions they face at every stage of life,” said NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya.

How it fits with existing efforts

The new division will work with NIH’s existing Office of Research on Women’s Health, which was established in 1990 and has long served as the central hub for women’s health research at the agency. The new division won’t replace that office but will have a broader mandate beyond research.

The order also revokes a March 2024 executive order on women’s health research and a November 2023 memorandum that established the White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research, both issued under the previous administration.

The order doesn’t set specific funding amounts or dedicated appropriations for the new division. Several women’s health organizations, including the Society for Women’s Health Research and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, called for sustained funding following the announcement. Researchers and advocates have noted that the division will need adequate staffing and funding to deliver measurable improvements.

What it means for patients

For now, the order doesn’t change how patients are diagnosed or treated. Its effects, if any, will likely play out over years as research is funded, completed and translated into care.

In the meantime, patients with questions about conditions such as endometriosis, PMOS or menopause symptoms should continue working with their health care providers on diagnosis and treatment options.