Would Dr. Mehmet Oz, a former diet supplement company advisor and investor, profit from the Trump Administration's plan to recommend folinic acid for those on the autism spectrum? No, that's not true: As a condition of taking the job of Administrator of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Oz pledged in writing to close out by July 3, 2025 his stake in iHerb, an LLC that sells folinic acid supplements. Even if he had not done so, the Department of Health and Human Services said it is only recommending prescription forms of folinic acid, not the direct-to-consumer products sold by marketers like iHerb.
The claim appeared in a September 22, 2025 X post (archived here) on the @simonmaechling account, which reads as follows:
RFK Jr is set to announce Tylenol causes autism. And then he'll push the "cure": leucovorin (folinic acid).
Who sells folinic acid? Dr. Oz's supplement company, iHerb. The same Dr. Oz who is now the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in Trump's administration.
Think about that: A government health official tied to the very supplement company that benefits from RFK Jr's bogus "cure." This isn't public health. It's corruption dressed up as wellness.
Here's what the post looked like on X at the time this fact check was written:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of the post at x.com/simonmaechling.)
The Department of Health and Human Services took to X (archived here) to push back on the claim, noting that FDA guidance recommends only prescription drug and not the over-the-counter folinic acid supplements sold by companies like iHealth:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of post at x.com/HHSGov.)
In a September 23, 2025 email to Lead Stories, iHerb Director of Global Communications Daphne Avila said Oz has cut his financial ties to the supplement maker:
Dr. Oz is no longer affiliated with iHerb as a result of a termination agreement executed earlier this year.
Therefore, he is not a paid advisor, officer or employee. He is divested from the company.
She made the same distinction made by the HHS X post, between diet supplement folinic acid and the prescription form, leucovorin:
OTC folinic acid supplements are typically in micrograms (mcg) and regulated as dietary supplements;
prescription leucovorin is milligram (mg) dosing and medically supervised.
They are not interchangeable.
Avila's email confirms the divestment pledge Oz made while being vetted for his job in the Trump Administration. He filed multiple signed public statements declaring he would divest and step away from iHerb and other healthcare industry companies that could benefit from his decisions as Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
In a February 26, 2025 letter to the Office of Government Ethics, (archived here) Oz declared that upon confirmation as Administrator of CMS, he would resign from his roles at iHerb:
I only have a position with iHerb Oz Partners LLC ... Upon confirmation, I will resign from my position with iHerb Oz Partners LLC.
... for a period of one year after my resignation, I will not participate personally and substantially in any particular matter involving specific parties in which I know iHerb Oz Partners LLC is a party or represents a party ...
Oz, in the same letter, said that within 90 days of his (April 3, 2025) confirmation, he would forfeit unvested shares (RSUs) in the company, shed his vested shares and not participate in CMS decisions with a direct effect on iHerb:
Upon confirmation, I will resign as advisor to iHerb, LLC, a nutritional supplement company.
I will forfeit my unvested RSUs upon my resignation from iHerb, LLC. I also will divest my vested RSUs in iHerb, LLC as soon as practicable but not later than 90 days after
confirmation. I will not participate personally and substantially in any particular matter that to my knowledge has a direct and predictable effect on the financial interests of this entity until I
have divested it ... for a period of one year after my resignation, I will not participate personally and substantially in any particular matter involving specific parties in which I know iHerb, LLC is a party or represents a party ...
Avila declined to disclose what share of overall iHerb revenues is generated by folinic acid supplements.
Using search words in Google Shopping to narrow results to mostly folinic acid products, Lead Stories found (archived here) iHerb is one of a dozen companies selling the supplement, as seen in these screenshots:
