The Senate Finance Committee is expected to vote late this afternoon on whether to advance President Donald Trump's pick and lead Dr. Mehmet Oz, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, to the Senate confirmation vote.
The vote follows two hearings by a committee that investigated OZ on plans for a federal healthcare program, his views on abortion, and potential conflicts of interest in the healthcare industry.
If confirmed, OZ will be responsible for approximately $1.5 trillion in federal healthcare costs. According to the Centers for Medicare Advocacy, a federal healthcare program for seniors aged 65 and over, currently covers around 65 million Americans. Medicaid, which supports low-income people, covers around 72 million Americans, according to Medicaid.gov.
Holy skeptical of Trump's Pick Oz: “I hope he changed his opinion.”
Dr. Mehmet Oz, the chosen President Donald Trump to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, sits before testifying at a confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Finance Committee on Capitol Hill, Washington on Friday, March 14, 2025 (AP Photo/Ben Cartis)
The former heart surgeon, whose appearance on daytime television and his 13 seasons of “The Dr Oz Show,” later moved into politics and launched a failed bid for the Pennsylvania Senate seat in 2022.
Oz graduated from Harvard University and earned a degree in medical and business from the University of Pennsylvania.
As the CMS administrator, OZ makes decisions related to procedures within federal healthcare programs, how hospital stays, how drug therapy is covered, and the rate at which healthcare providers receive payment for services.
Dr. Oz brings back the Democrats' attempt to portray him as a “snake oil” salesman at a Senate hearing
Dr. Mehmet Oz, who has been chosen by President Donald Trump to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is watching before he testifies to a confirmation hearing at Capitol Hill in Capitol Hill, Washington before the Senate Finance Committee. (AP Photo/Ben Cartis)
Earlier this month, Trump's selections to lead the NIH and FDA, Dr. Jay Batacharya and Dr. Marty McCurry, were also approved by committee, and are currently awaiting a full Senate confirmation slip.
Click here to get the Fox News app
Around the same time Bhattacharya and McCurry were awarded the committee's approval, Trump feared that he had withdrawn the nomination of former Florida MP David Weldon and had no GOP support to run the CDC and clear the full confirmation.
On Monday, the Trump administration was named Susan Monares, now director of the CDC.
