A senior Department of Health and Human Services public affairs official has resigned, citing deep concerns about the agency’s authorization of fruit‑flavored e‑cigarettes and the potential harm to children, according to a resignation letter to President Donald Trump reviewed by ABC News.
Richard Danker, who served as assistant secretary for public affairs at HHS, told the president in the letter that senior officials in Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s immediate office approved flavored vaping products that would expose minors to “nicotine addiction, lung damage, and a higher risk of cancer.” Danker wrote that the decision undermines a recently issued HHS guidance document warning about the youth risks associated with flavored nicotine products, the review shows.
Danker thanked Trump for “the honor of a lifetime” in serving across both presidential administrations and provided the resignation letter to ABC News but declined additional comment. A career regulatory and economic adviser by background, Danker previously worked as a senior advisor at the Treasury Department in the first Trump administration and had not worked in health care before joining HHS.
An HHS spokesperson pushed back in a statement to ABC News, saying Kennedy is advancing the administration’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) agenda to confront the chronic disease epidemic and improve children’s health. “Political appointees are here to execute that mission with urgency, discipline, and focus,” the spokesperson said. “Individuals who lose sight of the mission and the responsibility they were entrusted with are free to move on from the agency. HHS remains fully committed to delivering results for the American people.” The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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The resignation comes after the Food and Drug Administration authorized four new devices made by Glas, approving pods described on company materials as classic menthol, fresh menthol, gold and sapphire — with “gold” and “sapphire” identified as mango and blueberry flavors. The FDA has said it remains committed to removing illicit vapes that target minors, but the approval of flavored devices marks a notable shift in the agency’s recent approach and has generated alarm among pediatricians and youth advocacy groups.
Those concerns contributed to a broader clash within federal ranks: former FDA Commissioner Marty Makary left his post after what sources told ABC News were disagreements with the White House and pressure from Trump to authorize flavored vapes. Makary had publicly warned in July that the U.S. did not have approved vaping products with “cutie‑fruity flavors,” and his departure underscored the internal tensions around vaping policy and youth protections.
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Danker’s departure underscores growing friction inside the administration over how to balance adult nicotine harm‑reduction arguments against the risk that flavored products attract underage users. With federal officials, pediatric groups and advocacy organizations sharply divided, the episode is likely to intensify scrutiny of HHS and FDA decisions on flavored nicotine products and how those decisions align with the administration’s stated priorities for children’s health.
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