Donald Trump has picked TV personality and former Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz as his nominee to lead the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The 78-year-old president-elect said Oz, aged 64, will work closely with Health and Human Services Secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to take on the ‘industrial illness complex’.
Oz lost his Pennsylvania Senate race in 2022 to John Fetterman after beating the now U.S.-Senator-elect David McCormick in the Republican primary.
Prior to running for the Senate, Oz hosted the Dr. Oz Show and was a frequent guest on Oprah Winfrey’s show.
His syndicated talk show won nine Daytime Emmy Awards and featured segments on health, wellness and gave viewers advice on medicine.
‘Our broken Healthcare System harms everyday Americans, and crushes our Country’s budget,’ said Trump.
Donald Trump has named Dr. Mehmet Oz as his nominee to lead the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services
Trump said he has known Oz for ‘many years’ and he is ‘confident he will fight to ensure everyone in America receives the best possible Healthcare, so our Country can be Great and Healthy Again!’
He would serve directly under Kennedy, who Trump has chosen to lead the department.
‘He is an eminent Physician, Heart Surgeon, Inventor, and World-Class Communicator, who has been at the forefront of healthy living for decades,’ Trump said in a statement on Tuesday afternoon.
‘Dr. Oz will be a leader in incentivizing Disease Prevention, so we get the best results in the World for every dollar we spend on Healthcare in our Great Country.
‘He will also cut waste and fraud within our Country’s most expensive Government Agency, which is a third of our Nation’s Healthcare spend, and a quarter of our entire National Budget.’
Prior to running for the Senate, Oz hosted the Dr. Oz Show and was a frequent guest on Oprah Winfrey’s show
Oz has been married to author and radio personality Lisa Lemole (left) since 1985
‘I have known Dr. Oz for many years, and I am confident he will fight to ensure everyone in America receives the best possible Healthcare, so our Country can be Great and Healthy Again!’
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) administers the Medicare program and also is in charge of other services like inspecting nursing homes.
In all, the agency overseas coverage for one in every two Americans – that alongside Medicare includes Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program and Obamacare.
He will take over from President Joe Biden’s nominee Chiquita Brooks-LaSure.
This is breaking news. More to follow
