Tavenner to lead largest health insurance industry association
The former administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Marilyn B. Tavenner, has been named the new leader of America’s Health Insurance Plans, the top lobbyist for the U.S health insurance industry.
Tavenner left CMS in February and will succeed Karen M. Ignagni as AHIP’s president and chief executive, effective Aug. 24.
AHIP’s membership includes Aetna, Anthem, Humana, Kaiser Permanente and many Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies.
Because of federal conflict-of-interest rules, Tavenner will not lobby the agency or other parts of the Department of Health and Human Services in the remaining months of the Obama administration but she is free to lobby Congress.
Not everyone thinks the new title is worth celebrating. Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) is one person who questioned Tavenner’s history with the Obama administration’s healthcare initiative. “While millions of Americans are still being hurt by Obamacare’s soaring costs and fewer choices,” he said, “Ms. Tavenner’s appointment shows how the law has created a cozy and profitable relationship for some.”
Tavenner worked as a nurse for more than 20 years at the Hospital Corporation of America, a commercial hospital chain. She was the secretary of health and human resources in Virginia, managing Medicaid and other programs, from 2006 to 2010.
Editor
Editor Beth earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and master’s in health communication. She has worked in hospital, academic and publishing settings over the past 20 years. Beth joined TriMed in 2005, as editor of CMIO and Clinical Innovation + Technology. When not covering all things related to health IT, she spends time with her husband and three children.