If Confirmed, Chris Klomp Would Continue to Wreak Havoc on the U.S. Health Care System
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In his hearings before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee and the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee for the position of deputy secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), Chris Klomp showed that he would continue to serve the interests of Trump, Kennedy, and their billionaire backers instead of the American people. Robert Weissman, co-president of Public Citizen, issued the following statement:
“Chris Klomp sought to further his obsequious rise through the ranks of right-wing health policy in his hearings over the last two days. If confirmed as deputy secretary of HHS, he appears poised to continue to harm the U.S. health care system by prioritizing corporate profit and power over patients’ needs.
“Whether harming Medicare beneficiaries by supporting adding Medicare Advantage style prior authorization to Traditional Medicare, seeking to favor insurers by pushing to make Medicare Advantage the default enrollment for Americans turning 65, championing industries that he is closely tied to, or negotiating secret deals with the pharmaceutical industry to boost Big Pharma profits, Klomp has shown his true colors throughout his time at the Center for Medicare.
“As deputy secretary of HHS, Klomp would be in a position to supercharge the privatization of Medicare and to further the interests of those close to him. We need public servants willing to take on greed in health care, not facilitate the further degradation of our already broken health care system in service of corporate profit. Klomp is a wolf in sheep’s clothing and should be roundly rejected by every Senator.”