Orrin Hatch: “I rise today to speak in support of the nomination of Marilyn Tavenner to serve as Administrator of the Centers for…”

“I rise today to speak in support of the nomination of Marilyn Tavenner to serve as Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services or CMS, one of the largest agencies ever in the history of the country. For a number of reasons, CMS has been without a confirmed Administrator since the fall of 2006. CMS is the world's largest health insurer. It processes over a billion Medicare and Medicaid claims a year. It has a budget of nearly $1 trillion. It also provides services to over 100 million of our Nation's most vulnerable citizens receiving Medicare and Medicaid. So clearly this is a critical agency that needs a strong leader at the helm. Thus far, from what I have seen, Ms. Tavenner has the qualifications to be that kind of a leader I believe her to be. She has clinical experience from being a nurse, executive experience from serving as a hospital administrator, and hands-on operational experience from her time as the secretary of health and human resources for the State of Virginia. That rare combination of skills will be essential when heading an agency as diverse as CMS. There is a reason she was voted out of the Senate Finance Committee on a voice vote and had the House majority leader come testify on her behalf. Starting in 2010, she was appointed as the Deputy Administrator of CMS. Since November of 2011, she has served as the Acting Administrator.…”