The Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday advanced Dr. Mehmet Oz's nomination to become administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The 14 to 13 vote was along party lines. Oz next faces a vote for confirmation before the full Senate
Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, said by statement, "Dr. Oz's years of experience as an acclaimed physician and public health advocate have prepared him well to manage the intricacies of CMS. He will work tirelessly to deliver on the promise of much-needed change at CMS that ensures Americans receive the best care possible."
Ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said he could not support the nomination.
"During his confirmation hearing, Dr. Oz was given the chance to assure the American people that he would not be a rubber stamp for Republicans' plans to gut Medicaid and hike ACA premiums," Wyden said by statement. "At every turn he failed the test. When I asked him a 'yes or no' question about whether he would protect Medicaid, he dodged and weaved and refused to answer."
Oz appeared before the committee earlier this month.
When Wyden pressed him for a "yes" or "no" answer on whether he would cut Medicaid, the nominee replied, "The way you protect Medicaid is making sure it is viable at every level, which includes having enough practitioners to afford the services, paying them enough to do what you request of them, and making sure that patients are able to actually use Medicaid."
Some Republicans have proposed reducing spending by making cuts to Medicaid.
In 2018, Trump appointed Oz to the Presidential Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition, reappointing him to the position in 2020.
In 2022, Oz ran unsuccessfully for Senate in Pennsylvania, losing to Democrat John Fetterman.
Oz is best known for daytime talk show "The Dr. Oz Show," that ran for 13 seasons from 2009 through 2022, winning multiple Daytime Emmy Awards.
Email the writer: SMorse@himss.org