Dr. Donald Berwick Resigns as Head of CMS

Donald Berwick, MD, a tireless advocate for patient safety in health care, has decided to resign his post as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), effective December 2. I am very sorry to see him go.

Dr. Berwick will have served only 17 months in the post. President Obama nominated Dr. Berwick, who was head of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, for the CMS post in April 2010, a move that was hailed by diverse groups such as the American College of Physicians, the American Academy of Family Physicians, AARP, Walmart, and Consumers Union. Inspite ofthis broad based support, President Obama found that GOP opponents were blocking his Senate confirmation, as part of their all out strategy to stop health care reform. This caused the president to install Dr. Berwick as CMS administrator through a "pocket" appointment while the Senate was in recess, a special appointment that is set to expire by law at the end of 2011. Dr. Berwick was renominated in January 2011, but he still faced implacable opposition from Senate Republicans. His resignation, therefore, comes as no surprise.

According to news reports,  Dr. Berwick told the staff of the Department of Health and Human Services in an email, that he had "bittersweet emotions", and that although their work was challenging and incomplete, that "we are now well on our way to achieving a whole new level of security and quality for healthcare in America."

Amen. I hope so. Thank you, Dr. Berwick, for your leadership.

The Character Assasination of Dr. Don Berwick

Dr Don Berwick, one of the most highly qualified administrators ever nominated for public office, is about to be sacrificed on the altar of politics.  Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, recently told reporters  that he has discussed Berwick's nomination with Republican senators and they plan to oppose Berwick under any circumstances. “Republicans won,” he said about the nomination.

Trouble is, I don't remember hearing about any fight.

Tom Curry, Executive Director and CEO of the Washington State Medical Association wrote in his March 14th Monday Memo to physician members that:

This is one of those instances where it would be better to fight and lose (while defending one’s view of the underlying reform legislation) than “duck and cover”.

I agree. This deserves to be a fight - a big fight - a loud fight. Dr Berwick is a world leader in understanding the problems of quality and inefficiency in US healthcare. It is an area of study and learning that he has dedicated his life to. His nomination is supported by all of organized medicine. Why? Because physicians know the quality of his work and the seriousness of our problems. The barrier to his confirmation is, interests that profit from our current mess are going all out to scare people and paint Don Berwick as a radical who wants to ration their health care. Consider the website donberwick.com. This site is a project of The Heartland Institute, who according to sourcewatch is "a frequent ally of, and funded by, the tobacco industry" who "now refuses to publicly disclose who its corporate and foundation funders are". They are also known to have been funded in the past by the tobacco, oil and gas industry as well as the infamous Koch Brothers.

Do we want shadowy, secretly funded pressure groups paid for by big business to make our decisions for us, before debate occurs, or do we want a full discussion in the light of day? This is disgusting. Our legislators need to hear from us now.