Norwalk drops out of CMS Administrator succession

Leslie Norwalk, the Acting Administrator of the US Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), told President George W Bush that she did not want a permanent appointment when she took over at the agency, following the resignation of Mark McClellan (Marketletters passim). The news came as Republican President Bush nominated a 24-year veteran at the Department of Health and Human Services, Kerry Weems, for confirmation by the Democrat-controlled Senate.

In a memorandum sent to CMS staff, Ms Norwalk wrote: "I believe the next Administrator must be committed to stay for the remainder of the administration. It was not easy, but I decided early in the search process that I could not commit to staying for another two years." She added that she had promised to remain in the Administrator position until the Senate confirms a permanent choice.

President Bush also announced the appointment of Tevi Troy, a White House staffer, to replace the outspoken former HHS Deputy Secretary, Alex Azar (Marketletters passim), who resigned shortly after the Democrats took control of Congress.