By Greg Hazley
President Barack Obama has filled the top public affairs post at the Dept. of Health and Human Services with a recess appointment of Richard Sorian, a healthcare reform advocate and former journalist.
Sorian, who was nominated Oct. 5, 2009 and testified before the Senate in May, was VP of public policy and external relations for the National Committee for Quality Assurance and earlier led public affairs for the Center for Studying Health System Change.
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He had been serving as an advisor at HHS as he awaited Senate confirmation and was appointed assistant secretary for public affairs at HHS by the president on Thursday, one of four recess appointments made by the president this week.
"At a time when our nation faces so many pressing challenges, I urge members of the Senate to stop playing politics with our highly qualified nominees, and fulfill their responsibilities of advice and consent," the president said in a statement. "Until they do, I reserve the right to act within my authority to do what is best for the American people."
Sorian, who is openly gay, testified before the Senate Committee on Finance on May 26 on the importance of communicating the healthcare reform laws passed by Congress earlier this year.
"Clearly, a major priority of the Department and its Public Affairs division is and will be the implementation of the Affordable Care Act and related legislation. Public Affairs can play a key role in making sure these critical reforms are implemented successfully.
Helping people understand their rights and responsibilities under the Act is essential to its success."
His nomination was approved by that committee but has not faced the full Senate.
He was a senior communications advisor at HHS during the Clinton administration working on the attempted healthcare overhaul and later the Patient’s Bill of rights after 13 years in journalism at publications like Medicine & Health and the Journal of American Health Policy.
Under recess appointment rules, Sorian must be approved by the full Senate by the end of the next session of Congress, which runs through late 2011.
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