Washington. US President-elect Donald Trump chose heart surgeon Dr Mehmet Oz to head the agency that oversees the health insurance program for millions of America’s elderly, poor and disabled people. Trump, who is selecting his cabinet, has appointed Wall Street executive Howard Lutnick to head the Commerce Department. “Dr. Oz will work to encourage people to prevent disease so that we can get the best outcomes in the world for every dollar spent on health care in our great country,” Trump said in a statement.
“He will also reduce waste and fraud within our nation’s most expensive government agency, which accounts for one-third of our nation’s health spending and a quarter of our entire national budget,” he said. Oz, a former talk show host on television, had contested the 2022 election for US Senate membership in Pennsylvania, but lost.
He has been a vocal supporter of Trump and in the last few days he has expressed support for the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for the ‘Department of Health and Human Services’, the country’s top health agency. Oz will serve under Kennedy as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. If confirmed by the Senate, Oz will be responsible for programs under the Medicaid, Medicare and Affordable Care Act. Trump announced on his social media platform ‘Truth Social’ that “Lutnick will lead our tariff and trade agenda and will have additional direct responsibility for the Office of the US Trade Representative.”
