The appointment of Dr. Karen DeSalvo as assistant secretary for health at HHS has been approved by unanimous consent of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and now moves to the full Senate for a confirmation vote.
DeSalvo, who has served as acting assistant secretary since October, also heads the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology at HHS.
Her nomination was scheduled for a hearing Thursday, but action on it was fast-forwarded by committee Chairman Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), who on Wednesday obtained unanimous consent from his committee colleagues on the DeSalvo nomination without a hearing before the Senate recessed Thursday until Sept. 8.
DeSalvo has served as the fifth ONC chief since January 2014.
She was named acting assistant secretary to lead the federal government's response to the Ebola crisis. She has served in both jobs since.
