Donald Berwick, MD, president and CEO of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, has been formally nominated as CMS administrator, according to a release by the White House.
The announcement comes there weeks after the White House's intention was revealed by the media. The New York Times predicted Dr. Berwick's confirmation hearings in the Senate would become a "forum to debate the merits of the new healthcare law and to investigate how the administration plans to carry it out."
The Wall Street Journal said Dr. Berwick seems "well-placed" to carry out Medicare cost-cutting under health reform, because he has "stated in the past that the U.S. health care system should provide better care at a lower cost than it currently does."
Dr. Berwick's main goal, however, has been to push hospitals to provide safer care. The IHI's 1999 report, "To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System," is regarded as one of the most influential documents in the history of healthcare.
At the AHA, where Dr. Berwick sat on the board of trustees from 1996-1999, President and CEO Rich Umbdenstock said his "tools and advice" on patient safety have "touched the lives of thousands of patients."
Chip Kahn, president of the Federation of American Hospitals, said Dr. Berwick's "passionate and visionary advocacy makes him a particularly timely choice for CMS administrator."
Read the White House release on Don Berwick.
The announcement comes there weeks after the White House's intention was revealed by the media. The New York Times predicted Dr. Berwick's confirmation hearings in the Senate would become a "forum to debate the merits of the new healthcare law and to investigate how the administration plans to carry it out."
The Wall Street Journal said Dr. Berwick seems "well-placed" to carry out Medicare cost-cutting under health reform, because he has "stated in the past that the U.S. health care system should provide better care at a lower cost than it currently does."
Dr. Berwick's main goal, however, has been to push hospitals to provide safer care. The IHI's 1999 report, "To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System," is regarded as one of the most influential documents in the history of healthcare.
At the AHA, where Dr. Berwick sat on the board of trustees from 1996-1999, President and CEO Rich Umbdenstock said his "tools and advice" on patient safety have "touched the lives of thousands of patients."
Chip Kahn, president of the Federation of American Hospitals, said Dr. Berwick's "passionate and visionary advocacy makes him a particularly timely choice for CMS administrator."
Read the White House release on Don Berwick.