Senate Confirms Xavier Becerra as Next HHS Secretary

UPDATED The Senate has approved California Attorney General Xavier Becerra as the next Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Senators approved Biden’s pick for the next HHS Secretary in a 50-49 vote held earlier today. The vote largely came down party lines, with Democrats largely favoring Becerra.

Becerra’s nomination also came to a deadlock last month in a party-line vote among Senate Finance Committee members. Key Republicans, including Senator Tom Cotton, have tried to sink Becerra’s nomination over his lack of medical experience, support for abortion service access, and previous single-payer endorsement.

Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), however, did support Becerra’s nomination as the next HHS Secretary then and during the vote today.

Becerra will be the first Latinx individual to hold the position of HHS Secretary.

In his latest role, Becerra will oversee Medicare and Medicaid, as well as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and National Institutes of Health (NIH), among other agencies.

Overall, HHS is an 80,000-person department with a more than $1 trillion operating budget.

Chief among Becerra’s initial responsibilities as HHS Secretary will be spearheading the nation’s COVID-19 response efforts, including vaccination rollout and implementation of healthcare provisions in the American Rescue Plan, signed into law last week.

HHS would be responsible for implementing key provisions in the package, including providing free benchmark silver health insurance exchange plans to anyone who received a at least a week of unemployment benefits last year and marketing new healthcare subsidies for health insurance exchange plans this year.

Becerra also takes leadership of HHS as Congress continues to debate surprise billing and healthcare cost control legislation—two major topics dominating healthcare policy and regulation the last couple of years.

At Senate HELP and Finance committee hearings last month, Becerra testified that he would support hospital price transparency efforts already in effect from the previous administration.

Becerra has focused on improving healthcare price transparency in California and has also led several high-profile lawsuits challenging anti-competitive behaviors in the healthcare industry, including a major hospital merger and acquisition deal between Adventist Health System/West and St. Joseph Health System.

The California Attorney General has also notably brought more than 100 legal challenges against the Trump administration for healthcare, environmental, and immigration issues, with the most prominent case supporting the Affordable Care Act.

California led the case with 18 other states in arguing against the overturning of the landmark healthcare law before the US Supreme Court. The Court is expected to make a decision by the end of June.

During the headings, Becerra also criticized a “rushed” Part D drug rebate rule from the Trump administration that eliminated the anti-kickback safe harbor. The Biden administration has already delayed implementation of the rule, which critics say will raise Medicare premiums.

"I’m honored and humbled by today’s vote in the Senate. Thank you. I’m ready to get to work at @HHSgov," Becerra said in a tweet following the Senate vote.

The American Medical Association (AMA) has also released a statement on Becerra's confirmation.

"His leadership will be tested early as he arrives amid a pandemic and challenges to the Affordable Care Act. The AMA believes he is the right person for the job and looks forward to working with him to ensure that all Americans have access to quality health care during this perilous time," Susan R. Bailey, MD, president of AMA, said in a statement emailed to RevCycleIntelligence.