WASHINGTON – The US Senate confirmed the nomination of Sylvia Mathews Burwell as the next Secretary of Health and Human Services by a vote of 78 to 17. The Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held the Senate’s first hearing for Burwell on May 8, after the resignation of Kathleen Sebelius.
President Obama accepted the resignation of Sebelius in April after the HealthCare.gov website debacle. Republican senators had wanted Sebelius fired for months over mismanagement of the Obamacare rollout.
President Obama praised the confirmation, saying Burwell “is a proven manager who knows how to deliver results, and over her career she has built deep relationships with Democrats and Republicans alike. I’m confident Sylvia’s unparalleled experience will serve her well in her new role as she works to ensure the safety of our food and drug supply, protect our nation from outbreaks or bioterror attacks, keep America at the forefront of medical research, and make sure every American has access to quality, affordable healthcare.”
Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate HELP committee, also applauded the confirmation in a statement:
Senator Tom Harkin
“Through a dynamic career in both public service and private sector leadership, Sylvia Burwell has proven herself as an effective manager with experience and skill in leading a wide range of organizations. During her confirmation hearing in the HELP Committee last month, she garnered strong support from Members on both sides of the aisle.“The United States faces serious public health challenges, many of which require urgent answers. Very often, the entire world looks to HHS for leadership. Just last month, this country confronted the first ever incident of MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) within our borders. HHS responded quickly to educate the public, investigate the situation, and develop a path forward. We will count on our next Secretary for exactly that kind of informed, decisive action in the face of future challenges and crises, and to provide a steady hand overseeing an incredible range of activities across the Department.
“As Secretary, Ms. Burwell will also be in charge of a long-time priority of mine, disease prevention. She will lead our nation’s efforts to transform our health care system from a ‘sick care system’ into one that focuses on wellness and prevention, not just at the doctor’s office but also in our schools, workplaces, and communities.
“Of course, Ms. Burwell will have the critical role of overseeing implementation of the Affordable Care Act. We can be proud that, thanks to the ACA, we have seen over 6 million new Medicaid enrollees, and more than 8 million more Americans have signed up for health insurance in the Marketplaces. But there is more work to be done to continue successfully implementing the law and reforming our health care system.
“As Secretary, Ms. Burwell will shoulder incredibly important responsibilities that matter deeply to the health and wellness of the American people. I have no doubt that Ms. Burwell is up for the challenge and I am pleased that she has been confirmed as our next HHS Secretary. I look forward to working with her as she begins the important work of advancing our nation’s health.”
U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the senior Republican on the Senate health committee, called on Burwell to work with Republicans to “repair the damage done by Obamacare.”
Alexander urged Burwell to work with Congress, noting that the administration has instead made at least 22 unilateral changes to the health care law. “At this rate,” Alexander said, “the president may be invited to speak at the next Republican convention for doing the most of any elected official to undo his own health care law.”
He continued: “Republicans would like to repair the damage that Obamacare has done. We would like to prevent future damage, and as responsibly and rapidly as we can, we want to move in a different direction to put in place proposals that provide more freedom, more choices, and lower costs. We trust Americans to make those decisions for ourselves. We believe that is the American way. Since President Obama will still be in office for the next two years, if Ms. Burwell is confirmed we will need her help to do that.”
Alexander cautioned Burwell against repeating the mistakes of her predecessor. He asked the nominee to pay attention to five things:
1. “End the secrecy. I said last year that the NSA [National Security Agency] could have learned something from Secretary Sebelius, because getting information about the Obamacare exchanges was next to impossible for members of Congress.”
2. “Work with Congress. This administration has made at least 22 unilateral changes in the health care law, many of which should have been made by Congress. At this rate, the president may be invited to speak at the next Republican convention for having done the most of any elected official to undo his own health care law.”
3. “Be a good steward of taxpayer dollars. Apparently the government is set to spend more than $1 billion in technology costs on Obamacare. We know that nearly a half billion dollars were wasted on four failed state exchanges. This kind of waste makes hardworking Americans furious.”
4. “Show Americans some respect. That means: Don’t announce major policy changes in blog posts. And when Congress asks if you’re in trouble, don’t pretend everything is fine. If Secretary Sebelius had been upfront about the website problems before the rollout, we might have saved Americans precious time and money. And most importantly—the majority of Americans disapprove of the law, and start taking a look at Republicans’ health care proposals as a way to repair the damage done by Obamacare.”
5. “Please don’t solicit from companies you regulate. This is pretty simple. Secretary Sebelius solicited from companies she regulated. She shouldn’t have. This kind of behavior should leave with her.”
