Tag: HHS secretary

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump will nominate former pharmaceutical executive and industry lobbyist Alex Azar to the top post at the Department of Health and Human Services, according to news reports.Trump tweeted on Monday: “He will be a star for better healthcare and lower drug prices.”The nomination follows the resignation of Trump's first HHS secretary, Tom Price. Price left HHS in September amid an investigation into his use of charter flights instead of cheaper commercial flights.Currently,...

WASHINGTON - Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee have boycotted a vote on President Donald Trump's nominee for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., according to news reports.The committee was scheduled to vote at 10 a.m.Democrats boycotted the vote due to “truly alarming news” of a Wall Street Journal report that Price received a special discounted rate for stocks of an Australian pharmaceutical company called Innate Immunotherapies, Sen....

I've been making a round of calls to HME industry consultants today to see what they're working on with their provider clients. (Managing Editor Theresa likes to call the story that I write from these calls “Consultant's corner.”) I can't say that I've dug up much yet. I've been hearing a lot about audits, but that's pretty much business as usual for HME providers these days. A number of consultants I've spoken with have mentioned the anticipation surrounding the new administration and...

WASHINGTON - President Elect Donald Trump has named Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., a long-time champion of the HME industry and its efforts to reform Medicare's competitive bidding program, as the next secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, according to news reports.Price, a six-term congressman, is a vocal critic of the Affordable Care Act and, according to The New York Times, has been studying how to dismantle and replace Obamacare for the past six years. He serves on the influential...