CMS interim leader Andy Slavitt apparently is putting together his senior team as the departure of Administrator Marilyn Tavenner draws closer.
Dr. Patrick Conway will assume Slavitt's old post and act as principal deputy administrator, Slavitt said in an announcement Monday.
Dr. Mandy Cohen will be filling the departed Aryana Khalid's role as chief of staff. And Natalie Davis will serve as Slavitt's senior adviser.
Conway, currently the agency's chief medical officer, will continue in some of his other roles at the agency. He'll lead the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation and the Center for Clinical Standards and Quality, for example.
Conway “will continue to lead our strategic initiatives on delivery system reform," Slavitt said. Conway is tasked with meeting goals set out by HHS Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell regarding the move toward rewarding quality rather than volume of care.
Slavitt praised Conway's previous work in building innovation models and quality programs as important experience for his new role.
Cohen's role, Slavitt wrote, will be overseeing the CMS' activities. Her previous role was with CMS' Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight, where she was principal deputy director.
Davis, as senior adviser, will be responsible for reaching out to stakeholders, Slavitt said. Like Cohen, she came from the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight, where she contributed to the exchange program, most recently by providing technical assistance to its assister program.
Tavenner will be departing at the end of the month.
Follow Darius Tahir on Twitter: @dariustahir
