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“It’s Covid 24/7 now,” said Don Berwick, a former head of the Obama administration for Medicare and Medicaid. “This needs to be fixed.”
Biden has yet to make a final pick, according to three Democrats familiar with the selection process, and an announcement is unlikely to come until Monday at the earliest. Deliberations could still fall to others in a field of up to half a dozen finalists, such as Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo, former Louisiana Health Secretary Rebekah Gee and Health Secretary of North Carolina Mandy Cohen.
But Lujan Grisham and Murthy are widely viewed as top candidates, said more than half a dozen people on or near the transition, each with a distinct mix of political background, health policies and relationships dating back to the Obama years.
Former Democratic MP who is currently co-chairing Biden’s transition, Lujan Grisham has received a boost in recent weeks from the Hispanic Congressional caucus, which is pressuring Biden’s team to place them atop the HHS.
“When we think of someone who is a manager and a leader who knows these issues, Michelle is at the top of the list,” said California Democratic Representative Pete Aguilar, who has worked closely with Lujan Grisham during his three mandates in the House.
Influential Latino advocacy groups have also weighed in on his behalf, in particular highlighting his state leadership during the pandemic.
“She saw firsthand the impact of Covid-19 on her condition and handled the response – and she had to do a lot because there wasn’t a lot of federal guidance,” said UnidosUS President Janet Murguia, former head of the Clinton White House. . “She knows what it’s like to lead in this space and is a very credible candidate.”
Murthy, meanwhile, enjoys the support of the large base of Obama administration alumni who quickly populated the Biden transition. Biden’s health adviser during the campaign, he helped lead the new administration’s pandemic planning as co-chair of Biden’s Covid-19 advisory board.
If not chosen to lead HHS, Murthy will likely be appointed to another high-profile health post in the administration, several people close to the transition have said – potentially as part of the team. Covid-19 intervention from the White House.
A spokesperson for the Biden transition declined to comment. Lujan Grisham’s office did not respond to a request for comment. Earlier this week, she told reporters she had not spoken to Biden’s team about roles in the new administration.
The emergence of the top two HHS candidates reflects the disproportionate influence the pandemic is playing in Biden’s thinking as he prepares to take office amid a deep health and economic crisis.
The incoming administration is bracing itself for the first frantic months spent trying to curb the pandemic and mount a large-scale vaccination campaign – a huge logistical challenge that will require close coordination within the federal government.
In Lujan Grisham, Democrats say Biden’s team would find a capable and stable leader with extensive experience managing the New Mexico health agency and then the state as a whole. She was also one of the most aggressive governors in the fight against Covid-19, declaring a statewide emergency on the same day New Mexico confirmed its first positive case and closing schools shortly. time after.
Most recently, she ordered a two-week lockdown after a 200% increase in hospitalizations that put the state in what she called a “breaking point.” It’s the kind of action that could face serious scrutiny from Republicans if named – but an ally is touting as a sign of decision in a state that requires a balance between all kinds of political and cultural considerations.
“This pandemic puts a premium on someone who can bring people together and be a good manager,” Aguilar said. “It has a very diverse population; urban areas, very rural areas, and Native American tribal lands. The complexity of this is not lost on those of us outside of the state. “
The Biden team tasked with filling health care positions has also been drawn to governors and former governors in the search for candidates, a person close to the president-elect said, given the experience of leaders in the field. ‘State in the management of large bureaucracies and their skills as public messengers and political operators. Former HHS secretaries who were governors include Kathleen Sebelius, Mike Leavitt and Tommy Thompson.
And Lujan Grisham in particular is viewed by some Biden officials as a long-term prospect that could advance a broader political agenda beyond responding to the pandemic. When running for governor in 2018, Lujan Grisham called for the creation of a program that would allow people to buy Medicaid. The effort never started amid concerns about its cost, but the concept aligns with Biden’s basic proposal for a public insurance option at the federal level.
“On paper, she has a lot of credentials in her favor,” said a Democrat who was following the proceedings, adding that Lujan Grisham also had pre-existing connections on Capitol Hill. “Her reputation is that she is quite pragmatic and that she was able to work in the different facets of the various caucuses of the House.”
Still, its confirmation in the Senate would not be guaranteed – a key consideration for an administration that may need Republican help to install one of the leaders in its response to the pandemic. As House lawmaker, Lujan Grisham took advantage when his former group of consultants were awarded a contract to manage New Mexico’s high-risk insurance pool – even after Obamacare largely eliminated the cover model. The arrangement has since prompted accusations of conflict of interest.
And despite his role at the top of the transition, Lujan Grisham does not have the kind of close relationship with Biden or close ties to the Obama White House shared by nearly all of Biden’s top picks to date – y including Murthy.
The former Obama administration surgeon general was chosen to speak at the Democratic National Convention in August, and has since become one of Biden’s top health advisers, regularly briefing him on the pandemic and helping to lead the Covid-19 advisory board designed to oversee the transition. work on the response to the crisis.
Biden also sent Murthy to brief Democrats in Congress about the pandemic in recent weeks, a role some close to the transition have pointed out as a sign of Murthy’s high status within the new administration.
A longtime public health advocate who first rose to prominence as the co-founder of a pro-Obama medical group during the 2008 presidential campaign, Murthy was named the nation’s top doctor in 2014, where he played an outspoken role in efforts to stem the opioid crisis. and tackle a wide range of pressing public health issues.
If chosen as HHS secretary, it would mark a major re-engagement with public health issues that have often been stifled by controversial debates over policies like Obamacare – leaving the country’s public health infrastructure underfunded and vulnerable. to disasters like Covid-19. Murthy has also written extensively about the impact of loneliness on health, a goal that aligns with Biden’s goal of addressing the mental health consequences of the pandemic.
Still, Murthy has little managerial experience – a drawback when it comes to running a department with a trillion dollar budget and 80,000 employees.
And he’s already struggled during a confirmation process, facing fierce resistance over his support for access to contraception and reporting gun violence as a threat to public health. That stalemate has lasted for over a year – a delay the Biden administration can hardly afford this time around, as it rushes to deal with the growing Covid-19 crisis.
Still, some officials have argued that the view of gun violence as a health issue has since changed – and that Biden’s affinity for Murthy may ultimately prevail.
“If you look at the president-elect’s other announcements, it’s clear that he cares a lot about having people he knows and trusts, who have a pre-existing relationship with him,” one told POLITICO. person working with the transition. “Obviously, Vivek is one of them.”
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