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- Transition: Becerra Confirmed as HHS Secretary
Editor's Note: Advocacy Update will feature stories about the transition to the Biden Administration and new Congress. These stories will highlight major news on the President Joe Biden's cabinet, other administrative officials, and both chambers of Congress that will enact and execute new health care policies affecting pathologists, their laboratories, and the patients they serve.
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra was confirmed as Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) by the Senate on March 18. He was approved by a vote of 50 to 49, becoming the first Latino Secretary of HHS, the largest federal department in terms of spending.
During his time as attorney general, Becerra led several legal challenges on health care, including a defense of the Affordable Care Act in a current case before the Supreme Court. Before he became attorney general of California in 2017, Becerra served 12 terms in Congress representing the congressional district containing the city of Los Angeles.
The HHS includes several agencies, including the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the FDA, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.