Senate confirms Burwell as new
secretary of HHS
By Amy Goldstein, Updated: Thursday, June
5, 11:47 AM
The Senate on Thursday confirmed Sylvia Mathews Burwell, the White House’s budget director
for the past year, as the 22nd secretary of the Department
of Health and Human Services.
On a bipartisan vote of 78 to 17, senators
approved Burwell to lead the government’s largest domestic department, ending a
quick confirmation process that was devoid of the bitter partisanship
surrounding the 2010 Affordable Care Act and the changes it is bringing to the U.S.
health-care system.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron
Wyden (D-Ore.), whose committee recommended Burwell to the full Senate, said
moments before the vote that Burwell attracted what he called “a choir of
bipartisan support” because “she is really that good, she is really that capable,
and she is really that qualified.”
In her new role, the 48-year-old veteran
of the Clinton
administration’s economic team will oversee 11 far-flung agencies that make up
HHS, including the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, the Food and Drug
Administration and the enormous public insurance programs, Medicare
and Medicaid.
Burwell’s early focus, however, is almost
certain to center on the work that absorbed her predecessor, Kathleen Sebelius, during much of her five-year tenure as
HHS secretary: implementing the Affordable Care Act in a climate that remains
politically polarized and could become more so, depending on the outcome of
congressional elections this fall.
According to an HHS aide, Burwell is scheduled
to take over once she is sworn in on Monday.
The White House and federal health
officials have celebrated the fact that the first six-month sign-up period in
new insurance marketplaces overcame a troubled start to enroll 8 million people
by early this spring — more than predicted.
Health-policy specialists point out,
however, that much work remains to put the sprawling law into practice. For
example, federal health officials need to merge into the federal insurance
exchange three states — and possibly more — whose attempts to run their own
insurance marketplaces have failed.
Officials also continue to wrestle with
HealthCare.gov, the computer system for the federal health insurance exchange.
Some aspects are not yet working or built, including parts designed to handle
enrollment records, enable the direct enrollment of people poor enough to
qualify for Medicaid, and allow the online enrollment of small businesses that
want health plans through the new marketplaces.
HHS also will need to decide how to handle
a requirement under the law that many employers offer health benefits to their
workers — a provision that the Obama administration has delayed twice.
President Obama nominated Burwell on April
11, the same day that Sebelius announced her resignation. Last fall, Sebelius
became a public face of what the president called a “disastrous” launch of new
insurance marketplaces, but she remained in place until after the first
enrollment period ended.
During confirmation hearings last month
before two Senate committees, Republicans reiterated their objections to the
health-care law. But critics did not challenge Burwell’s competence or
suitability to run HHS.
Several Senate Republicans clung to that
distinction on the Senate floor on Wednesday and Thursday morning in
preparation for the vote. Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) said that he plans to
support Burwell, adding that he finds her “articulate, forthright,
straightforward and candid — something we really haven’t had from the secretary
of HHS for the last year or so. . . . I like having somebody who has the
intellect and the capability and the willingness to be communicating with the
members of Congress, regardless of their party.”
But Isakson was quick to add: “No one
should confuse that vote, however, for being a vote in support of the
Affordable Care Act or what it’s doing to health care in the United States
today.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell
(R-Ky.) said Thursday morning that he would vote “no.” “Her embrace of this
disastrous law is reason enough to oppose her confirmation . . . [I]n
my view, the Senate shouldn’t be focusing on a new captain for the Titanic. It
should focus on steering away from the iceberg.”
Democrats countered with a recitation of
benefits from the law, from widening access to health coverage to helping to
stabilize the financial underpinnings of Medicare, the federal health insurance
program for older Americans.
“This bill is making a huge difference,”
said Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Md.). “We have the best health care in the
world. We are now on the path of having the best health-care system in the
world, and the Affordable Care Act helped us get there.”
In the end, 24 Republicans joined all
voting members of the Senate’s Democratic caucus in supporting Burwell. Still,
the vote was more divided than a rare unanimous vote 14 months ago when the
Senate confirmed her to direct the Office of Management and
Budget.
Before returning to Washington last year,
Burwell spent more than a decade in the world of philanthropy — with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and then as president of
the Walmart Foundation.
During the Clinton administration, Burwell
held several economic roles — as staff director of the White House National
Economic Council, as Treasury chief of staff under then-secretary Robert Rubin,
and then at the Office of Management and Budget, where she eventually became
the deputy director.
After becoming budget director 14 months
ago, Burwell was mired at first in fiscal conflicts with congressional Republicans
and, by October, had to manage the 16-day partial shutdown of the government.
Despite her Washington experience, she is not well known
in health policy circles, and, during her confirmation hearings, she gave
little concrete sense of the direction in which she will take the complex
department she will inherit.
Sylvia Mathews Burwell
Sylvia
Mathews Burwell is the secretary-nominee at the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services (HHS) for the Barack Obama
administration, a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
the director at the U.S. Office of Management
and Budget, and was the president, global development for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Note: Aspen
Strategy Group is a contributor for the Center for a
New American Security.
Stephen
Friedman was a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
is an advisory board member for the Center for a New American
Security, and a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think
tank).
Madeleine
K. Albright was a director at the Center for a New American
Security, is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
and a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think
tank).
Bill
& Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Aspen
Institute (think tank).
Jane
Lakes Harman is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
and a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think
tank).
David
H. McCormick is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
and a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think
tank).
Condoleezza Rice
is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank),
and a 2008 Bilderberg conference
participant (think tank).
Foundation
to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think tank).
George Soros
was the chairman for the Foundation to
Promote Open Society.
James S.
Crown is a trustee at the Aspen Institute
(think tank), and a member of the Commercial
Club of Chicago.
Lester Crown
was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute
(think tank), and is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
R. Eden
Martin is the president of the Commercial Club of Chicago,
and counsel at Sidley Austin LLP
Michelle
Obama was a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP.
Dora Hughes
is a senior policy adviser for Sidley Austin LLP,
and was Kathleen Sebelius’s counselor at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Barack Obama
was an intern at Sidley Austin LLP.
Newton N.
Minow is a senior counsel at Sidley Austin LLP,
and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
Rahm I.
Emanuel is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago,
Ezekiel Emanuel’s brother, and was the
White House chief of staff for the Barack Obama administration.
Ezekiel
Emanuel is Rahm I. Emanuel’s brother, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, and was the health care policy
adviser at the U.S. Office of Management and Budget
for the Barack Obama administration.
Bill
& Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Center for
American Progress.
George Soros
was a supporter for the Center for American
Progress, and the chairman for the Foundation
to Promote Open Society.
Foundation
to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Center for
American Progress.
Tom Daschle is the
chairman for the Center for American Progress, was
secretary-nominee at the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services (HHS) for the Barack Obama
administration, and a 2008 Bilderberg
conference participant (think tank).
John D.
Podesta is the founder of the Center for American
Progress, the counselor for the Barack Obama
administration, was a member of the Aspen
Strategy Group, and a director at the Center for a
New American Security.
Madeleine
K. Albright is a director at the Center for American
Progress, a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
and was a director at the Center for a New American
Security.
Aspen
Strategy Group is a contributor for the Center for a
New American Security.
Zoe Baird
is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
and an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution
(think tank).
Bill
& Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Brookings
Institution (think tank).
Foundation
to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Brookings
Institution (think tank).
George Soros
was the chairman for the Foundation to
Promote Open Society.
Susan M.
Collins was a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution
(think tank), and is a member of the Aspen
Strategy Group.
Richard C.
Blum is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution
(think tank), and married to Senator Dianne
Feinstein.
Dianne
Feinstein is married to Richard C. Blum,
a U.S. Senate senator, and a member of
the Aspen Strategy Group.
James
B. Steinberg is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
was the deputy secretary at the U.S. Department of State
for the Barack Obama administration, and a
director, foreign policy studies for the Brookings Institution
(think tank).
John F. Kerry
is the secretary at the U.S. Department of State
for the Barack Obama administration, and is
married to Teresa Heinz Kerry.
Teresa
Heinz Kerry is married to John F. Kerry,
and an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution
(think tank).
Strobe
Talbott is the president of the Brookings Institution
(think tank), and a member of the Aspen
Strategy Group.
Richard
N. Haass was a VP for the Brookings Institution
(think tank), a senior associate at the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace (think tank), and is a member of
the Aspen Strategy Group.
Jessica Tuchman Mathews
was an honorary trustee at the Brookings
Institution (think tank), a board member for the International Crisis Group, is the president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think
tank), a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg (think tank), a member of the Aspen Strategy Group, and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).
Ed Griffin’s interview
with Norman Dodd in 1982
(The investigation into
the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace uncovered the plans for
population control by involving the United States in war)
Foundation
to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank), the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace (think tank), and the Center for American Progress.
George Soros
was the chairman for the Foundation to
Promote Open Society, a supporter for the Center for
American Progress, is a board member for the International
Crisis Group, and the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations.
Open
Society Foundations was a funder for the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace (think tank), the Center for American Progress, and the Atlantic
Council of the United States
(think tank).
Samuel
R. Berger is a board member for the International Crisis Group,
the chair for the Albright Stonebridge Group,
and a member of the Aspen Strategy Group.
Wendy R.
Sherman was a managing board member for the Albright
Stonebridge Group, and a member of the Aspen
Strategy Group.
Melody C.
Barnes is a senior director at the Albright Stonebridge Group,
Barack Obama’s golf partner, was the
domestic policy council, director for the Barack Obama
administration, and the SVP for the Center for
American Progress.
Carol M.
Browner is a senior counselor at the Albright Stonebridge Group,
a senior fellow, director at the Center for American
Progress, and was the energy czar for the Barack Obama
administration.
Madeleine
K. Albright is the chair for the Albright Stonebridge Group,
a director at the Center for American
Progress, a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
an honorary director at the Atlantic Council of the United States
(think tank), and was a director at the Center for a
New American Security.
Aspen
Strategy Group was a contributor for the Center for a
New American Security.
Open
Society Foundations was a funder for the Atlantic
Council of the United States
(think tank).
George Soros
is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations.
Anne-Marie
Slaughter was a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States
(think tank), is an advisory board member for the Center for a New American Security, and a member of the Aspen Strategy Group.
R.
Nicholas Burns is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States
(think tank), was a director at the Center for a
New American Security, and a member of the Aspen
Strategy Group.
Chuck Hagel
was the chairman for the Atlantic Council of the United States
(think tank), a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
and is the secretary at the U.S. Department of Defense
for the Barack Obama administration.
Dov S.
Zakheim is a director at the Atlantic Council of the
United States (think tank), a member of the Aspen Strategy
Group, and was the under secretary for the U.S.
Department of Defense.
Stephen
J. Hadley is a director at the Atlantic Council of the
United States (think tank), a member of the Aspen
Strategy Group, and was the under secretary for the U.S. Department of Defense.
Brent
Scowcroft is the interim chairman; chair, international advisory board for
the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank),
and a co-chairman for the Aspen Strategy Group.
James
E. Cartwright is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States
(think tank), and a member of the Aspen
Strategy Group.
Condoleezza Rice
is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States
(think tank), a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
and a 2008 Bilderberg conference
participant (think tank).
William
J. Perry is an honorary director at the Atlantic
Council of the United States
(think tank), a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
and a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative
(think tank).
Richard
G. Lugar is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
and a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative
(think tank).
Sam Nunn is
a member of the Aspen Strategy Group, and a
co-chairman & CEO for the Nuclear Threat Initiative
(think tank).
David A.
Hamburg is an adviser for the Nuclear Threat Initiative
(think tank), and his daughter is Margaret A.
Hamburg.
Margaret
A. Hamburg is David A. Hamburg’s
daughter, the VP for the Nuclear Threat Initiative
(think tank), the commissioner for the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration (FDA), and was an assistant secretary for
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace (think tank)
was a funder for the Nuclear Threat Initiative
(think tank).
Jessica Tuchman Mathews
is a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative
(think tank), the president of the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace (think tank), a member of the Aspen Strategy Group, a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg (think tank), and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think
tank).
Ed Griffin’s interview
with Norman Dodd in 1982
(The investigation into
the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace uncovered the plans for
population control by involving the United States in war)
Sylvia
Mathews Burwell is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
the secretary-nominee at the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services (HHS) for the Barack Obama
administration, the director at the U.S. Office
of Management and Budget, and was the president, global development
for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Warren
E. Buffett is a trustee & major donor for the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation, an adviser for the Nuclear
Threat Initiative (think tank), and a life trustee at the Urban Institute (think tank).
Foundation
to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Urban
Institute (think tank), and the New America Foundation.
George Soros
was the chairman for the Foundation to
Promote Open Society, and his daughter is Andrea Soros.
John M.
Deutch is a life trustee at the Urban Institute (think
tank), and a member of the Aspen Strategy Group.
Bill
& Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the New America
Foundation, and the Acumen Fund.
Fareed
Zakaria is a director at the New America Foundation,
an advisory council member for the Acumen Fund,
and a member of the Aspen Strategy Group.
Andrea Soros
is a director at the Acumen Fund, and
her father is George Soros.
Diana
Farrell is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
a director at the McKinsey & Company,
and was the deputy assistant to the president on economic policy for the Barack Obama administration.
Sylvia
Mathews Burwell was an associate at McKinsey & Company,
the president, global development for the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation, a deputy director for the U.S. Office
of Management and Budget, William J. Clinton’s
deputy chief of staff, is a director at the U.S. Office
of Management and Budget, the secretary-nominee at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for the Barack Obama administration, and a member of the Aspen Strategy Group.
William
J. Clinton’s deputy chief of staff was Sylvia Mathews Burwell,
his daughter is Chelsea V. Clinton, and the
founder of the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton
Foundation.
Chelsea V. Clinton
is William J. Clinton’s daughter, the vice
chair for the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation,
and was an employee at McKinsey & Company.
Open
Society Foundations was a funder for the Bill, Hillary
& Chelsea Clinton Foundation, and the Atlantic
Council of the United States
(think tank).
George Soros
is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations.
Condoleezza Rice
is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States
(think tank), a member of the Aspen Strategy Group,
and a 2008 Bilderberg conference
participant (think tank).
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