President-elect
Donald Trump will roll out two top members of what he will cast as a
"dream team" on Tuesday to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system, a
transition official
told Reuters on Monday.
Trump is set
to name Georgia congressman Tom Price as Health and Human Services secretary
and Indiana consultant Seema Verma to lead the powerful Centers for Medicare
and Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency that oversees government health programs
and insurance standards.
If confirmed
by the Senate, Price and Verma will play a central role in overhauling the
health care insurance law better known as Obamacare, the signature domestic
legislative achievement of President Barack Obama, once the Trump administration
takes office on Jan. 20.
Price, an
orthopedic surgeon and vociferous critic of the Affordable Care Act, has long
championed a plan of tax credits, expanded health savings accounts, and lawsuit
reforms to replace Obamacare.
Verma was the
architect of the nation's first consumer directed Medicaid program, the Health
Indiana Plan, which requires beneficiaries to make monthly contributions to
health savings accounts.
Trump had
pledged during his campaign for the White House to repeal Obamacare and replace
it with a plan to give states more control over the Medicaid health plan for
the poor and allow insurers to sell plans nationally.
However, after
meeting Obama following the Nov. 8 election, Trump said he would consider
keeping provisions in the law that let parents keep adult children up to age 26
on insurance policies and bar insurers from denying coverage to people with
pre-existing conditions.
Price and
Verma are two of about 70 people who Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence
have met so far as they look to shape their White House and Cabinet team before
taking office. Trump and Pence are also expected to reveal an additional
Cabinet pick on Tuesday.
SECRETARY OF
STATE INTRIGUE
But the
coveted secretary of state job will not be announced on Tuesday, Jason Miller,
a spokesman for Trump, said in a Fox News interview.
The jockeying
to be America's top diplomat is taking place in an unusually open fashion,
reflecting the unconventional political approach of Trump, a real estate
magnate who has never held public office.
Trump was
slated to have dinner on Tuesday night with Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican
presidential nominee. Romney was a fierce critic of Trump during his run for
office but is now a "top flight" candidate for the secretary of state
post, Miller said.
Miller said
Trump was also considering former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani - favored by
Trump loyalists who worked on the election campaign - and discussed the
position with retired general David Petraeus on Monday.
"Just met
with General Petraeus--was very impressed!" Trump said on Twitter shortly
after Petraeus left the hour-long meeting in Manhattan.
Petraeus, a
former U.S. military commander who led international forces in both Iraq and
Afghanistan, was sentenced to two years' probation and fined $100,000 last year
for the unauthorized removal and retention of classified information.
He admitted
sharing classified information with his biographer, with whom he was having an
affair. The scandal forced Petraeus to resign from the CIA in 2012.
Petraeus said
after meeting Trump the New York businessman "basically walked us around
the world" in their discussion. "He showed a great grasp of the
variety of challenges that are out there and some of the opportunities as
well," Petraeus told reporters.
PETRAEUS'
TROUBLE
Petraeus' past
mishandling of classified documents is unlikely to be an obstacle to Trump
offering him a top government post, even though Trump harshly criticized
Democratic rival Hillary Clinton during the campaign for using a private email
server while she was secretary of state.
Trump often
compared the prosecution of Petraeus with the lack of legal action against
Clinton, who was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation but never
charged with any offense.
"Just
based on his public statements, I think (Trump) sees Petraeus as a good man who
made a mistake, who did a fraction of what other people have done and received
a lot more punishment," said a source who has advised the transition team
on national security.
Among the
Trump transition team, Petraeus and Romney are supported by Republicans looking
for a candidate with gravitas who can unify the party, the source said.
But Kellyanne
Conway, a senior adviser who managed Trump's campaign, has said Romney would
cause a backlash among his supporters, who back Guiliani.
Miller said
Conway has Trump's blessing to express her views about Romney.
On Tuesday,
Trump also plans to meet U.S. Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, the chairman of
the Senate Foreign Relations Committee who is also said to be in the mix.
Ideological
conservatives hope Trump picks John Bolton, the former ambassador to the United
Nations, the source said. Corker is well regarded but some in the Trump camp do
not want too many senators in the Cabinet, the source said.
Reuters
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