Several news organizations report that the Biden administration will nominate former federal executive and legislative branch health policy official Chiquita Brooks-LaSure to serve as Administrator of the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The White House had not announced Biden’s pick for the job as of this late this morning.
Due to the 340B program’s close relationships to Medicaid and Medicare, the next CMS administrator will wield significant influence over the drug discount program, which is part of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). The administration also has not yet announced who Biden will appoint to run HRSA.
Brooks-LaSure currently is a Managing Director at the consulting firm Manatt Health, where she focuses on regulatory and legislative policies regarding private insurance, Medicaid, and Medicare. The firm also has a large 340B practice. She previously held senior policy positions at both CMS and the Health and Human Services Department (HHS) during the Obama administration, served on the Democratic staff of House Ways and Means Committee, and began her career as a program examiner and lead Medicaid analyst for the White House Office of Management and Budget.
