CMS chief announces resignation, Obama administration taps his deputy as successor

Marilyn Tavenner was named last week by the White House to succeed Donald Berwick as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, but it is unclear how her nomination will be received by Congress.

The Washington Post: Nominee To Head Medicare Viewed As A Pragmatist
It is unclear what reception she will get in confirmation hearings. Republicans have reacted cautiously to her nomination. "This is a name that should be sent up to the Senate," Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), a vocal Berwick critic, said in an interview. "She should appear and answer our questions on her views on Medicare, Medicaid and the president's health care law. Then people can make a reasoned judgment" (Kliff, 11/27).

Kaiser Health News: Tavenner To Replace Berwick At CMS Helm
Marilyn Tavenner, who has an extensive health background as a nurse, a health care official at both the state and federal level and a hospital chain executive, was tapped by President Barack Obama Wednesday to succeed Dr. Donald M. Berwick as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (Carey and Galewitz, 11/23).

Politico Pro: Tavenner's Career Spans Health Industry
Marilyn Tavenner, a nurse, brings years of experience working in divided government and a career spanning the health care industry to her new role running CMS. Tavenner started out as a nurse taking care of patients and rose to become a top executive in the country's largest for-profit hospital company before being named Virginia's health secretary by Gov. Tim Kaine. President Barack Obama named her principal deputy of CMS in 2010 (Feder, 11/23).

Bloomberg: Obama's Medicare Chief Berwick To Resign
Donald Berwick, who directed the U.S. health care overhaul as head of the Medicare and Medicaid programs, resigned, and President Barack Obama nominated Berwick's top deputy to run the effort. Berwick's confirmation as chief of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has been blocked by Senate Republicans, who say comments he made in the past criticizing the U.S. health system and complimenting the British National Health Service rendered him unfit for the job. … Obama nominated Berwick's chief deputy, Marilyn Tavenner, to replace him (Wayne, 11/23).

Reuters: U.S. Medicare Chief To Resign After Political Standoff
A senior U.S. official who helped lead President Barack Obama's health care overhaul will step down from the helm of the Medicare program after Republicans blocked his Senate confirmation for the job. Obama appointed Dr. Donald Berwick as U.S. government insurance chief in July 2010 during a Congressional recess to bypass the Senate, where Republicans held up his confirmation. Obama resubmitted Berwick's candidacy to the Senate two months later, but the administration will now nominate his deputy, Marilyn Tavenner, to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the White House said on Wednesday (Selyukh, 11/23).

Newshour: Why Medicare Chief Don Berwick Was Destined To Step Down
Dr. Donald Berwick, the man who has been both praised and reviled as the country's Medicare chief, will step down on Dec. 2. The White House announced that Marilyn Tavenner, Berwick's principal deputy and formerly Virginia's top health official, will succeed him. Berwick, a pediatrician and Harvard professor, has many admirers in the health policy world for his views on how to reform the American health care system. As director of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Berwick had begun to implement some of those ideas. One of his top priorities has been a program to cut down on hospital mistakes and errors, which reportedly affect one out of every three Americans who enter a hospital for treatment (Bowser, 11/23).