Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has dismissed two senior officials from his immediate office in a staffing overhaul aimed at advancing his “Make America Healthy Again” agenda. The department confirmed the personnel changes this week, as reported by Fox News.
The official HHS leadership page no longer lists Heather Flick Melanson, who had served as Kennedy’s Chief of Staff, or Hannah Anderson, who was Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy. Both had held influential positions within the department since Kennedy assumed the role.
"Secretary Kennedy has made a leadership change within the Immediate Office of the Secretary,” an HHS spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “Effective immediately, Matt Buckham will serve as Acting Chief of Staff.”
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Buckham had previously been serving as Kennedy’s White House liaison at HHS, where he led recruitment and onboarding efforts for political appointees across the agency.
“He brings valuable experience in personnel strategy and organizational management to this new role,” the spokesperson said.
The agency offered no details about the reasoning behind the dismissals but noted, “Secretary Kennedy thanks the outgoing leadership for their service and looks forward to working closely with Mr. Buckham as the Department continues advancing its mission to Make America Healthy Again.”
Melanson had held multiple high-level roles during the Trump administration. She served as HHS' Acting General Counsel, Acting Secretary for Administration, and later as a Senior Adviser to then-Secretary Alex Azar.
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Before joining HHS, she worked at Dhillon Law Group, the law firm founded by Harmeet Dhillon, who now serves as Assistant Attorney General in the Trump administration.
At the time of Melanson’s appointment, her return to HHS had drawn praise from prominent Trump allies.
“Heather Flick is outstanding and will most definitely help soon-to-be Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr.,” former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn said in a post on X.
Hannah Anderson’s background and reasons for her departure were not detailed in the department’s announcement.
Matt Buckham’s elevation to Acting Chief of Staff marks a strategic shift in Kennedy’s senior leadership team as the department focuses on aligning with the White House’s health policy priorities.
The leadership change comes amid broader restructuring efforts inside the department, with a focus on pushing forward conservative-aligned healthcare initiatives and staffing priorities under the Trump-Kennedy administration.
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