Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act public exchange system now have a boss.
Members of the Senate voted 55-43 Monday for confirm Seema Verma as President Donald Trump's administration of the Centers for Medicare & Services.
Verma has been a health programs consultant in Carmel, Indiana, for 16 years. She is best known as the creator of an Indiana program that offers moderate-income Medicaid enrollees access to accounts resembling health reimbursement arrangements.
All Republicans who voted supported Verma's nomination.
Three Democrats, and Angus King, a Maine independent who normally sides with the Democrats, crossed the aisle to vote for Verma.
The three Democrats who voted for Verma were Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, and Joe Donnelly, one of Indiana's senators.
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, spoke on Verma's behalf on the Senate floor.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., complained about Verma's vague answers to health policy questions. He also tried to link her to the House Republicans' American Health Care Act proposal for de-funding the Affordable Care Act, and to future "TrumpCare" raids on Medicaid.
