Report: Biden Is Considering New Mexico Governor, Obama Surgeon General For HHS Secretary

Washington, UNITED STATES: The US Department of Health and Human Services building is shown in Washington, DC, 21 July 2007. The department, which began operations in 1980, has more than 67,000 employees. AFP PHOTO/S... Washington, UNITED STATES: The US Department of Health and Human Services building is shown in Washington, DC, 21 July 2007. The department, which began operations in 1980, has more than 67,000 employees. AFP PHOTO/Saul LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) and former Obama-era surgeon general Vivek Murthy have emerged as top picks for Health and Human Services Secretary in the incoming Biden administration, Politico reported late Tuesday.

The role will arguably be among the most important that Biden will fill as the federal government prepares to roll out distribution of COVID-19 vaccines amid surging cases of the virus.

The HHS secretary will play a key role in managing how the nation conducts pandemic response, along with rebuilding trust in science-based guidance and health expertise, which President Donald Trump has spent many months eroding.

Although Biden has not yet made a formal decision, the nomination could follow a series of firsts as Biden seeks to diversify his team. Politico points out that Grisham would be the first Latina nominated for the role and that Murthy’s selection would make him the first nominee of Indian descent for the job.

An announcement of  Biden’s pick for the role is not expected until Monday at the earliest, three people with knowledge of the selection process told Politico. 

Murthy would join a host of Obama administration alumni if selected. A former surgeon general, who once focused on tackling the opioid crisis and the loneliness epidemic, he has served as health adviser to Biden during the campaign. Murthy has played a significant role in the incoming administration’s pandemic planning as co-chair of Biden’s COVID-19 advisory board.

Grisham, another top contender for the leading HHS job, has broad managerial expertise — she once ran New Mexico’s health department. Grisham, a former U.S. congresswoman was elected governor in 2019, and has been rigorous in her efforts to curb COVID-19 in her state. She declared a statewide emergency on the same day her state confirmed its first positive cases.

While is not uncommon for incoming presidents to select governors to lead the Health and Human Services department, Grisham does not share ties to the Obama White House that have been characteristic of many of Biden’s picks so far.

According to Politico, Murthy will likely have a future in the Biden administration even if he is not selected as HHS secretary — potentially as part of the White House’s Covid-19 response team.

Also up for consideration have included Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo, former Louisiana health secretary Rebekah Gee and North Carolina health secretary Mandy Cohen.

Latest News

Notable Replies

  1. Sounds good to me.

  2. Both of them are great picks…isn’t it nice to live in the world of competent ADULTS again?

  3. Well apparently the CDC needs a lot of help. They’re using a website to justify school openings, run by an Econ professor who admits she only has a very partial data set:

  4. What’s the political outlook for holding that governorship in New Mexico? Like it or not, Biden needs to prioritize such thinking, rather than simply opting for the best candidate possible. Plucking elected Democratic office-holders out of their current positions makes me nervous in general.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

11 more replies

Participants

Avatar for discobot Avatar for sysprog Avatar for eggrollian Avatar for cervantes Avatar for daveyjones64 Avatar for musgrove Avatar for grandpajoe Avatar for mrf Avatar for khaaannn Avatar for sharong Avatar for dommyluc Avatar for citizentompaine Avatar for michaelryerson Avatar for 10c Avatar for bloomingpeonie

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: