Via BioCentury ...
Republicans urge Obama to withdraw Berwick CMS nod
Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) and 40 other Republican Senators sent a letter to President Obama urging him to withdraw his nomination of Donald Berwick as administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Berwick was re-nominated for the position in January. Obama appointed Berwick to the position last July while Congress was in recess, allowing Berwick to serve until Dec. 31, 2011, without a Senate confirmation vote.
The Senators said Berwick's "lack of experience in the areas of health plan operations and insurance regulation raise serious concerns about his qualification for this position." Berwick's nomination can be prevented if at least 40 senators vote against it during the confirmation process.
Berwick has started to assemble his own team at CMS. Patrick Conway is on his short list of possible replacements for Barry Straube, who stepped down as the chief medical officer of CMS in January. Conway is currently chief medical officer in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation at HHS. He is the former director of HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
Don with the wind?
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