2 days ago
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Some scientists at the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have been instructed to stop using terms such as “woman,” “disabled,” and “elderly” in external communications, two sources familiar said.
The directive is part of a list of banned words that a White House spokesman later said resulted from a misinterpretation of President Donald Trump’s executive order.
A document titled “Prohibited words” has been circulating in official FDA work chats since at least last week, according to the two scientists, who requested anonymity for fear of professional repercussions.
The sources said the list, which has not been previously reported, is causing confusion at an agency already grappling with widespread layoffs under the Trump administration.
“I don’t understand why we can’t use a word like ‘woman,'” one FDA source who received the list said. “The words on the list would make it almost impossible to do our jobs.”
The list includes more than two dozen words, such as “underrepresented,” “underserved,” “understudied,” “sex,” “identity,” “diverse,” “women,” “promote,” “definition,” “continuum,” “ideology,” “self-assessed,” “special populations,” “elderly,” and “disabled.” No explanation accompanied the directive, leaving FDA scientists uncertain about its origins or purpose.
A White House spokesman told Reuters that most of the words on the FDA list were not actually prohibited and suggested that FDA officials had misinterpreted Trump’s executive order against “gender ideology.”
However, he confirmed that certain terms—including “gender,” “inclusion,” “identity,” “diversity,” “inter,” “intersex,” “equity,” “equitable,” “transgender,” and “trans”—must be removed from communications to comply with the order.
An FDA spokesperson said the agency has no official list of banned words and declined to comment on the White House’s position that some words are restricted.
The FDA is not the only federal health agency facing speech restrictions. In recent weeks, another federal health agency was told to eliminate words such as “gender,” “transgender,” and “nonbinary” from its communications to align with Trump’s policies.
As a result, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) removed publicly available health information, including HIV datasets, and withdrew research papers pending review by Trump appointees before submission to scientific journals.
Public health experts warn that such changes could hinder efforts to address medical needs across diverse populations, particularly those affected by HIV and sexually transmitted diseases.
The two FDA sources said they believe the list originated within the Centre for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH), a division responsible for ensuring the safety and effectiveness of medical devices.
They warned that the speech restrictions, coupled with recent employee dismissals, would likely slow medical device reviews and impede scientists’ ability to assess safety concerns before products reach the public.
The White House spokesman confirmed that more than 1,000 FDA employees have been dismissed across various divisions.
These firings are part of broader mass layoffs across federal agencies, led by the Department of Government Efficiency, overseen by tech billionaire Elon Musk.
Boluwatife Enome
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