United States Secretary of Health and Human Services
United States Secretary of Health and Human Services | |
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![]() Seal of the Department | |
![]() Flag of the Secretary | |
since March 19, 2021 | |
United States Department of Health and Human Services | |
Style | Mr. Secretary (informal) The Honorable (formal) |
Member of | Cabinet |
Reports to | President of the United States |
Seat | Hubert H. Humphrey Building, Washington, D.C. |
Appointer | President of the United States with Senate advice and consent |
Term length | No fixed term |
Constituting instrument | Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1953 67 Stat. 631 42 U.S.C. § 3501 |
Precursor | Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare |
Formation | May 4, 1980 |
First holder | Patricia Roberts Harris |
Succession | Twelfth[1] |
Deputy | Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services |
Salary | Executive Schedule, Level I |
Website | www.hhs.gov |
The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The Secretary is a member of the United States Cabinet. The office was formerly Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. In 1980, the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was renamed the Department of Health and Human Services, and its education functions and Rehabilitation Services Administration were transferred to the new United States Department of Education.[2] Patricia Roberts Harris headed the department before and after it was renamed.[3]
Nominations to the office of Secretary of HHS are referred to the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and the United States Senate Committee on Finance, which has jurisdiction over Medicare and Medicaid,[4] before confirmation is considered by the full United States Senate.
Xavier Becerra has served as the 25th United States secretary of health and human services since March 19, 2021, the first person of Hispanic descent to hold the post.
Duties
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Flag_of_the_Secretary_of_Health%2C_Education%2C_and_Welfare.png/170px-Flag_of_the_Secretary_of_Health%2C_Education%2C_and_Welfare.png)
The duties of the secretary revolve around human conditions and concerns in the United States. This includes advising the president on matters of health, welfare, and income security programs. The secretary strives to administer the Department of Health and Human Services to carry out approved programs and make the public aware of the objectives of the department.[5]
The Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) was reorganized into a Department of Education and a Department of Health and Human Services (US DHHS).
The Department of Health and Human Services oversees 11 agencies including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).[6]
List of secretaries
- Parties
Democratic (9) Republican (15) Independent (1)
Status
Denotes acting HHS Secretary
Nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services
Line of succession
The line of succession for the Secretary of Health and Human Services is as follows:[8]
- Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services.
- General Counsel of the Department of Health and Human Services
- Assistant Secretary for Administration
- Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
- Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
- Commissioner of Food and Drugs
- Director of the National Institutes of Health
- Assistant Secretary for Children and Families
- Other Assistant Secretaries (following in the order they took the oath of office)
- Assistant Secretary for Health
- Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response
- Assistant Secretary for Legislation
- Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs
- Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources
- Assistant Secretary for Aging
- Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Director, Region 4 (Atlanta, Georgia)
Living former secretaries
Health, education, and welfare
As of September 2024, there are two living former secretaries of health, education and welfare, the older being Joseph A. Califano Jr. (served 1977–1979, born 1931). The most recent secretary of health, education and welfare to die was Caspar Weinberger (served 1973–1975, born 1917), on March 28, 2006. The most recently serving secretary to die was Patricia Roberts Harris (served 1979–1980, born 1924) on March 23, 1985.
Name | Term | Date of birth (and age) |
---|---|---|
F. David Mathews | 1975–1977 | December 6, 1935 |
Joseph A. Califano Jr. | 1977–1979 | May 15, 1931 |
Health and human services
As of September 2024, there are eight living former secretaries of health and human services, the oldest being Louis W. Sullivan (served 1989–1993, born 1933); The most recent secretary of health and human services to die was Margaret Heckler (served 1983–1985, born 1931), on August 6, 2018. The most recently serving secretary to die was Otis R. Bowen (served 1985–1989) on May 4, 2013.
Name | Term | Date of birth (and age) |
---|---|---|
Louis W. Sullivan | 1989–1993 | November 3, 1933 |
Donna Shalala | 1993–2001 | February 14, 1941 |
Tommy Thompson | 2001–2005 | November 19, 1941 |
Mike Leavitt | 2005–2009 | February 11, 1951 |
Kathleen Sebelius | 2009–2014 | May 15, 1948 |
Sylvia Mathews Burwell | 2014–2017 | June 23, 1965 |
Tom Price | 2017 | October 8, 1954 |
Alex Azar | 2018–2021 | June 17, 1967 |
References
- ^ "3 U.S. Code § 19 - Vacancy in offices of both President and Vice President; officers eligible to act". LII / Legal Information Institute. Retrieved November 10, 2017.
- ^ Holbrook, M. Cay (February 6, 2017). Foundations of Education: History and theory of teaching children and youths with visual impairments. American Foundation for the Blind. ISBN 9780891283409.
- ^ "Patricia R. Harris (1977–1979)—Miller Center". millercenter.org. Archived from the original on February 7, 2017. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
- ^ "Jurisdiction | The United States Senate Committee on Finance". finance.senate.gov. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
- ^ "The President's Cabinet". Ben's Guide. February 1, 2007. Retrieved November 15, 2007.
- ^ "HHS Agencies & Offices | HHS.gov". Retrieved November 10, 2017.
- ^ a b Harris was Secretary on May 4, 1980, when the office changed names from Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to Secretary of Health and Human Services. Because the department merely changed names, she did not need to be confirmed again, and her term continued uninterrupted.
- ^ "Providing an Order of Succession Within the Department of Health and Human Services". Federal Register. February 20, 2008. Retrieved October 30, 2016.
External links
- Official website
- Department Of Health And Human Services Meeting Notices and Rule Changes from The Federal Register RSS Feed