President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday tapped Dr. Mehmet Oz, a former television talk show host and heart surgeon, to lead the agency responsible for overseeing health insurance programs for millions of poor, disabled and elderly Americans.
The former president also named Wall Street executive Howard Lutnick to take over the reins of the Department of Commerce.
“Dr. Oz will be a leader in encouraging disease prevention, so that we get the best global outcomes for every dollar we spend on health care in our great country,” Trump said in a statement.
“It will also reduce waste and fraud within our country’s most expensive government agency, accounting for one-third of our nation’s health care spending and one-quarter of our entire national budget.”
Oz, who ran unsuccessfully in 2022 to represent Pennsylvania in the federal Senate, has been a staunch supporter of Trump and in recent days has spoken out in favor of the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as head of the main agency of health in the country, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
As administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Oz would report to Kennedy. If confirmed by the Senate, Oz would be responsible for the programs — Medicaid, Medicare and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) — on which more than half of the country depends. of the country’s inhabitants to obtain health insurance.
Meanwhile, in his role as Commerce Secretary, Lutnick will play a key role in implementing Trump’s plans to raise and apply tariffs, Trump said Tuesday. Lutnick is a cryptocurrency enthusiast and director of the Cantor Fitzgerald investment bank.
Trump made the announcement on his social media platform Truth Social. In the publication, the virtual president-elect said that Lutnick “will be at the forefront of our tariff and trade agenda, with additional direct responsibility for the Office of the United States Trade Representative.”
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