Sunscreen Reform Made the MAHA Report: How 2025 Politics Pushed the FDA
How did a long-stalled US sunscreen filter suddenly get momentum in 2025? The answer runs through Washington politics as much as chemistry.
The Make America Healthy Again Commission strategy report, published in September 2025, listed sunscreen reform among 128+ action items and urged the FDA to 'promote innovation in the sunscreen market, and improve regulatory processes for over-the-counter sunscreen, which has fallen behind other countries.' HHS Secretary RFK Jr. later tied the bemotrizinol proposal directly to that promise.
The FDA describes the proposal as expanding sunscreen options for the first time in two decades, and policy observers note that the agency's review of newer filters long predates 2025 — the political report served as an accelerant, not the original science.
Questions we get a lot
What did the MAHA report actually say about sunscreen?
The September 2025 MAHA Commission strategy report included sunscreen reform among more than 128 action items, calling on the FDA to promote innovation and improve regulatory processes for over-the-counter sunscreen, which it said had fallen behind other countries. HHS Secretary RFK Jr. later connected the bemotrizinol filter proposal to fulfilling that pledge.
Is the FDA actually approving new sunscreen filters now?
The FDA announced it was moving to expand sunscreen options for the first time in 20 years, which it characterized as opening the door to newer active ingredients. A proposal is a step in the regulatory process, not instant availability on store shelves, so timelines for specific filters can still be lengthy.
r/SkincareAddiction: 'Wait, are we finally getting the modern sunscreen filters Europe and Korea have had for years?'