Style Mr. Secretary Reports to The President Term length No fixed term | Member of Cabinet Seat Washington, D.C. | |
 | ||
Appointer The President
with Senate advice and consent | ||
The United States Secretary of Health and Human Services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, concerned with health matters. The Secretary is a member of the President's Cabinet. The office was formerly Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare.
Contents
- Duties
- List of Secretaries of Health and Human Services
- Line of Succession
- Department of Health Education and Welfare
- Department of Health and Human Services
- References
In 1979, the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was renamed the Department of Health and Human Services, and its education functions and Rehabilitation Services Administration were transferred to the new Department of Education. Patricia Roberts Harris headed the department before and after it was renamed.
Nominations to the office of Secretary of HHS are referred to the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and the Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over Medicare and Medicaid, before confirmation is considered by the full United States Senate.
Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act the role of the Secretary has been greatly expanded.
Current secretary Tom Price was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on February 10, 2017.
Duties
The duties of the secretary revolve around human conditions and concerns in the United States. This includes advising the president on matters of health, welfare, and income security programs. The Secretary strives to administer the Department of Health and Human Services to carry out approved programs and make the public aware of the objectives of the department.
The Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) was reorganized into a Department of Education and a Department of Health and Human Services (US DHHS).
Since the attacks of 9/11 and the subsequent anthrax attacks, the position has held a unique significance in the War on Terrorism. Upon his departure, then-Secretary Tommy Thompson remarked, "I, for the life of me, cannot understand why the terrorists have not attacked our food supply, because it is so easy to do . . . ." In part, the new US DHHS, like other federal departments, have been subjected to a reorganization of federal personnel and contracts led by the US Homeland Security Office, and resulting in shifting privatization in core industries and "police control".
The Department of Health and Human Services oversees 11 agencies including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Center for Disease Control (CDC), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
List of Secretaries of Health and Human Services
Democratic (8) Republican (14) Independent (1)
Line of Succession
The line of succession for the Secretary of Health and Human Services is as follows:
- Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services.
- General Counsel of the Department of Health and Human Services
- Assistant Secretary for Administration
- Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
- Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
- Commissioner of Food and Drugs
- Director of the National Institutes of Health
- Assistant Secretary for Children and Families
- Other Assistant Secretaries (following in the order they took the oath of office)
- Assistant Secretary for Health
- Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response
- Assistant Secretary for Legislation
- Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs
- Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources
- Assistant Secretary for Aging
- Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Director, Region 4 (Atlanta, Georgia)
Department of Health, Education, and Welfare
As of April 2017, there are two living former Secretaries of Health, Education and Welfare, the oldest being Joseph A. Califano, Jr. (served 1977-1979, born 1931). The most recent Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare to die was Caspar Weinberger (served 1973-1975, born 1917), on March 28, 2006. The most recently serving Secretary to die was Patricia Roberts Harris (served 1979-1980, born 1924) on March 23, 1985.
Department of Health and Human Services
As of April 2017, there are seven living former Secretaries of Health and Human zdervices, the oldest being Margaret Heckler (served 1986-1989, born 1931). The most recent Secretary of Health and Human Services to die was Richard Schweiker (served 1981-1983, born 1926), on July 31, 2015. The most recently serving Secretary to die was Otis R. Bowen (served 1985-1988, born 1918) on May 4, 2013.