A White House press briefing held after Dr Mehmet Oz’s swearing-in as administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) was abruptly cut short on Friday following a medical emergency involving a child.
The incident occurred in the Oval Office shortly after Dr Oz, a former heart surgeon and television personality, formally took the oath of office. While President Donald Trump was answering questions about Iran’s nuclear programme, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt urgently intervened. “Press out! Everybody get out, right now!” she told reporters, prompting confusion in the room.
Moments before the interruption, Donald Trump had been addressing Iran’s nuclear ambitions: “I’m for stopping Iran very simply from having a nuclear weapon. They can’t have a nuclear weapon. I want Iran to be great and prosperous and terrific,” he said, adding that during his administration, Iran was “broke” and unable to fund groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. He blamed President Biden for reversing sanctions: “Biden came in. He took all the sanctions off. China wasn’t allowed to buy… I said if you buy one barrel of oil from Iran, you can’t do business in the United States.”
The president continued, warning, “With Iran, they can’t have a nuclear weapon, and if they have a nuclear weapon, you’ll all be very unhappy.”
He also briefly mentioned ongoing US-China communications, describing them as “really very good,” just seconds before the medical emergency brought the press event to an end.
The disruption was caused by a young girl—later confirmed to be a member of Dr Oz’s family—who suddenly collapsed. Dr Oz quickly moved to assist her. Though she managed to stand, she appeared disoriented and was helped out of the room. Officials later confirmed that she was fine, but did not release her identity.
The ceremony had just concluded minutes earlier, with Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr administering the oath while Trump looked on. The president praised Oz for his “big commitment,” reaffirming his administration’s position: “no cuts” to Medicare and Medicaid.
Dr Oz, 64, now leads CMS, the federal agency responsible for overseeing health coverage for nearly half of the US population, including programmes like Medicare, Medicaid, and plans under the Affordable Care Act. His appointment comes amid growing concerns over potential Medicaid cuts as Congress debates budget priorities.
The unexpected turn of events briefly overshadowed the significance of the moment, but the White House later assured the public that the child had recovered. The briefing did not resume following the disruption.
