WASHINGTON – Kathleen Sebelius begins her first day today as Department of Health and Human Services secretary, having garnered Senate confirmation Tuesday evening in a 65-31 vote.
Two hours after the Senate voted to confirm her to the last vacant cabinet post, she was sworn in. The brief ceremony occurred in the Oval Office at 8:02 p.m.
During debate on her nomination earlier that day, Senate Democrats had praised Sebelius as possessing impeccable credentials for the challenges she would face, including a major public health threat with the swine flu and the revamping of a healthcare system that today accounts for 16 percent of the Gross National Product.
Several mentioned preventable medical errors that, according to some studies, result in more than 200,000 deaths a year and cost the country $8.8 billion.
President Barack Obama and many lawmakers are looking to healthcare information technology as one way to improve care, reduce errors and cut costs. Sebelius has been an advocate of healthcare IT.
Sebelius, who had resigned as governor of Kansas after Tuesday's vote, went directly to the White House to be sworn in. Then she went to work, attending a briefing by White House counter-terrorism adviser John Brennan in the Situation Room in the worldwide swine flu epidemic.
Senators who spoke during the floor debate earlier in the day most often mentioned swine flu and healthcare reform as the most urgent challenges Sebelius faces.
"The case for reform of our healthcare system has never been stronger or more urgent," Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) said.
He noted the costs of doing nothing. If the system were left as is, he said, the cost of healthcare – as a percentage of the GNP – could double in 10 years. He also noted that financially troubled General Motors paid more for healthcare costs than for steel.
Others cited the 47 million people who are uninsured, of which 9 million are children.
"If that doesn't persuade you, the economic justification ought to persuade you," Dodd said. "Fixing the healthcare crisis is absolutely essential to fixing the economy."
After Sebelius was sworn in, Obama cited the importance of making healthcare affordable. He also mentioned food safety and the current flu crisis.
Obama nominated Sebelius on March 2 after his first choice for the post, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Dashcle, disclosed he owed $140,000 in back taxes and withdrew his name from consideration.
Sebelius herself faced a number of challenges during the nomination process, including $7,900 in back taxes and 11th hour efforts by anti-abortion leaders to derail her nomination.
Sen. Jon Kyle (R-Ariz.) raised objections Tuesday about her support of comparative effective research in medicine. He called it "a way to ration healthcare."
"This should be a matter of concern for every American," he said.
