Brooks-LaSure: "We left everything on the field"
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Brooks-LaSure. Caroline Brehman/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
For most of the Biden administration, Chiquita Brooks-LaSure presided over Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP and the Affordable Care Act, which combined now insure more than 100 million people.
The big picture: As CMS administrator, Brooks-LaSure kept a relatively low profile but rolled out policies that brought the uninsured rate to historic lows and implemented the first government drug price negotiations. Many voters were unaware of the accomplishments.
- Mehmet Oz is in line to succeed her, pending Senate confirmation.
Brooke-LaSure spoke to Axios on her last full day on the job. The remarks have been edited for brevity and clarity.
On her legacy at CMS: We have the lowest uninsured rate that we've ever had, and that's what I'm incredibly proud of: that that coverage is really meaningful.
On messaging around Medicare drug price negotiations: We're limited in our resources to talk about and educate people about the changes. And so, yes, I do wish that there was more awareness of the really monumental changes that have occurred and are currently occurring.
On what else she wanted to do: We left everything on the field. [But] I would love more time to continue to work on prior authorization. That's something that we have been tackling, and I think we need to continue to make sure that people can access the care that they need.
- The last thing is not something I can do, but it's the [Medicaid] coverage gap. ... [I wish] that Congress would fill the coverage gap, or the states would expand. I think that is just such a travesty in our country, that some of the poorest people do not have access to health care.
On what's next: I don't know, but I know that I'll be watching and always very passionate about making sure people have affordable health care coverage.
