Dr. Mehmet Oz was confirmed Thursday to lead the nation’s largest healthcare agency as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The Senate voted 53 to 45, along party lines, to confirm Oz.
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The thoracic surgeon and former Medicare Advantage pitchman, who has not led any large organizations, will take the helm of CMS at a time when both the Republican-led Congress and the administration of President Donald Trump are seeking drastic cuts in healthcare spending.
Senate Finance Committee Chair Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) praised Oz in comments before the vote that sent the nomination to the full Senate, saying his confirmation hearing performance as well as the extensive answers he returned to committee members afterward showed Oz is up to the job.
In his hearing, Oz echoed the Trump administration's plan to "making America healthy again" by focusing on lifestyle problems and prevention. Oz demonstrated enthusiasm for ramping up technological approaches to achieve better health outcomes and efficiencies, including a strong embrace of artificial intelligence.
"His vision for treating the underlying causes of chronic disease and equipping providers with innovative technology to serve patients will also be a much needed sea change at CMS," Crapo said. "I'm confident that his years spent as a leading physician and public health advocate make him duly qualified to accomplish these goals."
Oz made a pitch for Democratic support, pledging to work with them on key issues, particularly prior authorizations and reforms to Medicare Advantage despite his longtime support for the private alternative to Medicare. It fell on deaf ears and the Finance Committee recommended his nomination on a party-line vote.
The ranking Democrat on the Finance Committee, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) compared Oz to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., saying both had pushed dubious alternative cures and would be dangerous for America.
"Everything this administration is doing is an effort to make you and your family less healthy and less safe," Wyden said on the Senate floor. "Dr. Oz is yet another slick salesman peddling unproven cures and treatments, and encouraging people to ignore proven facts and science."
He also took issue with Oz's elevation of technology, noting for instance that Oz declined to agree with Wyden's view that a nurse should be on duty in a long-term care facility at all times.
"An AI chatbot paid for by private equity isn’t going to take your mom to the bathroom, or bring your grandpa his meals every day," Wyden said. "Dr. Oz is great on TV, but seems to have no understanding that technology is no replacement for real nurses and medical staff."
He will assume control of an agency in flux that impacts some 160 million Americans and with a budget of around $1.7 trillion. Kennedy Jr. is attempting to cut some 20,000 employees across the the Health and Human Services Department while Congress is weighing budget proposals that are likely to require deep cuts in Medicaid.
