The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) communicated its strong support for the nomination of Donald M. Berwick, M.D., as administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
"Dr. Berwick's leadership over the course of his career to improve health care quality and the positive impact his work has had on patients makes him the ideal person to lead CMS," said ASHP CEO and Executive Vice President Henri R. Manasse, Jr., Ph.D., Sc.D. in a letter to Senator Max Baucus, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.
Berwick, one of the nation's leading authorities on health care quality improvement, is president and chief executive officer of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) based in Cambridge, Mass. Dr. Berwick is also Clinical Professor of Pediatrics and Health Care Policy at the Harvard Medical School and professor of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard School of Public Health. He is a 2005 recipient of the ASHP Board of Directors Award of Honor.