Calley Means, a senior adviser to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and a leading advocate of the Make America Healthy Again movement, has resigned from the Trump administration amid reports of disagreements over the pace of federal food policy reforms.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Calley Means, a senior adviser to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and a prominent figure in the Make America Healthy Again movement, announced his resignation Thursday, Oct. 22, following reports that he had grown frustrated with delays in implementing the administration’s health and nutrition agenda.
Means submitted his resignation to Kennedy on Wednesday, according to a source familiar with the matter cited by Reuters. He confirmed his departure in a social media statement Thursday, expressing appreciation for President Donald Trump and Kennedy while highlighting the policy changes he helped advance.
“It was an honor to advocate for MAHA moms in the administration and steer policies like Dietary Guidelines reform, psychedelic reform, removing soda from SNAP, removing food dyes, GRAS reform, and overhauling government food procurement,” Means wrote.
He added that he was leaving the White House with “tremendous respect for President Trump and Bobby Kennedy.”
Means did not publicly identify a specific reason for his resignation, but The Wall Street Journal reported that he had become increasingly dissatisfied with delays involving several of Kennedy’s major health initiatives.
According to people familiar with the situation, Means believed that food manufacturers and other special interests were exercising excessive influence over administration decisions, slowing policies intended to address chronic disease and improve the American food supply.
Among the initiatives reportedly affected were efforts to establish clearer definitions and labeling requirements for ultraprocessed foods, update nutritional standards for school meals and strengthen federal oversight of food additives.
The White House has disputed suggestions that it is abandoning Kennedy’s food policy agenda, maintaining that the administration remains committed to nutrition reforms.
Means was a central figure in the movement that helped bring Kennedy into Trump’s administration following the 2024 presidential election.
A former food industry consultant turned health entrepreneur, Means became known for criticizing financial incentives within the health care and food industries that he argues contribute to chronic illness.
He served as an adviser to Kennedy’s presidential campaign before joining the Trump administration in March 2025 as a special government employee.
After that temporary appointment ended in October 2025, Means returned the following month as a permanent senior adviser focused on food and nutrition policy.
During his tenure, he advocated changes to federal dietary guidelines, restrictions on sugary beverage purchases through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the removal of certain synthetic food dyes.
He also supported reforming the Food and Drug Administration’s Generally Recognized as Safe, or GRAS, regulatory framework, which allows certain food ingredients to enter the market without undergoing the same premarket approval process required for other additives.
Additional priorities included federal food purchasing standards and expanded research into psychedelic therapies.
According to STAT News, Means helped shape several major administration initiatives and remained a vocal defender of Kennedy’s agenda despite growing criticism from some MAHA supporters.
His departure comes less than two weeks before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, as disagreements over pesticides, food additives and other health policies have generated tensions within the movement.
In particular, the administration’s handling of proposed restrictions on ultraprocessed foods and chemicals has drawn criticism from advocates seeking faster regulatory action.
Means and his sister, physician and wellness author Casey Means, gained national prominence through their criticism of the American health care system and their 2024 book, Good Energy: The Surprising Connection Between Metabolism and Limitless Health.
Casey Means was nominated by Trump to serve as U.S. surgeon general, but the administration withdrew her nomination earlier this year following opposition in the Senate.
Before entering government service, Calley Means founded Truemed, a company that helps consumers use tax-advantaged health savings and flexible spending accounts for eligible health and wellness purchases.
Despite the circumstances surrounding his resignation, Means emphasized that he continues to support the broader movement and the administration’s stated health goals.
“I leave with tremendous respect for President Trump and RFK — two historic figures who are committed [sic] confronting a corrupt DC bureaucracy that is doing everything possible to protect the status quo,” Means said in a statement provided to STAT.
“The past two years have seen historic policy and cultural change to confront the chronic disease crisis and healthcare incentives that profit from us being sick. This movement is in the first inning and just getting started,” he added.
The Department of Health and Human Services had not publicly announced a replacement for Means or provided a detailed explanation of his departure.
His resignation removes one of Kennedy’s most visible advisers as the administration continues working to implement its nutrition and chronic disease initiatives.
While the administration maintains that those policies remain priorities, Means’ departure underscores reported disagreements over how quickly the federal government should move to implement the reforms sought by Make America Healthy Again advocates.
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