Trump Nominates Former Drug Company Executive as HHS Secretary

Trump will nominate former drug company executive and lobbyist Alex Azar as secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). Azar is a critic of ObamaCare.^[1]

According to CNBC, Azar has historically served as president of Lilly USA. Lilly USA is the American arm of drug giant Eli Lilly and Company.

That is the news, here are a few insights and opinions to augment it:

• Those thinking that Trump would be making an effort to let Medicare debate drug prices, or would be pushing drug reform, should note that Eli Lilly is a “giant drug company.”
• Those thinking that Trump would drain the swamp should note that Azar is a drug lobbyist with a history of working in Washington.
• Azar notably said that the government should play a bigger role in healthcare. He just doesn’t think the Affordable Care Act is the best way forward.
• This means a critic of the Affordable Care Act, a former drug company lobbyist, and a former drug company executive is now in charge of HHS (which is in control of many aspects of the Affordable Care Act).
• Azar’s experience, in other words, could be a blessing or a curse. This is also true of his ideological stance on the Affordable Care Act (as it could lead him to dismantle the parts he controls now, or it could lead him to help reform it).

1. Trump nominates former drug company executive Alex Azar as next Health and Human Services secretary