Dr. Mehmet Oz heads to the Senate with pitch to oversee America's health
insurance programs
[March 14, 2025]
By AMANDA SEITZ
WASHINGTON (AP) — Dr. Mehmet Oz, President Donald Trump's pick to lead
the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, will testify before the
Senate Finance Committee on Friday morning.
The 64-year-old was a respected heart surgeon who turned into a popular
TV pitchman. Now he has his sights on overseeing health insurance for
about 150 million Americans enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid or Affordable
Care Act coverage.
Republicans, who have coalesced around Trump's nominees for the health
agencies, are likely to ask Oz about his plans for Medicare and
Medicaid, including the Trump administration's focus on eliminating
fraud from the $1 trillion programs.
Democrats, meanwhile, will question Oz's tax filings, which they say
show he has used a tax code loophole to underpay taxes by thousands of
dollars on Medicare, the program he'll oversee. They will also grill Oz
on any cuts he would make to the health insurance coverage as well as
comments on his TV show supporting privatized Medicare.
The U.S. Office of Government Ethics has done an “extensive review” of
Oz's finances, spokesman Christopher Krepich said in a statement about
Oz’s taxes. He added that the office has indicated “any potential
conflicts have been resolved and he is in compliance with the law.”
Oz has hawked everything from supplements to private health insurance
plans on his former TV series, “The Dr. Oz Show,” which ran for 13
seasons and helped him amass a fortune.
Oz’s net worth is between $98 million and $332 million, according to an
analysis of the disclosure, which lists asset values in ranges but does
not give precise dollar figures. His most recent disclosure shows he
also holds millions of dollars worth of shares in health insurance,
fertility, pharmaceutical and vitamin companies. He has promised to
divest from dozens of companies that would pose conflicts for him as the
CMS administrator.
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Mehmet Oz speaks during a campaign rally in Pennsburg, Pa., Nov. 7,
2022. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)
In the job, he could wield significant power over most health companies
operating in the U.S. because he can make decisions about who and what
are covered by Medicare and Medicaid.
Oz's hearing comes as the Trump administration seeks to finalize
leadership posts for the nation’s top health agencies. On Thursday,
Senate committees voted to advance the nominations of Marty Makary,
poised to lead the Food and Drug Administration, and Jay Bhattacharya,
set to helm the National Institutes for Health, for a full Senate vote.
The nomination of Dave Weldon to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention was abruptly withdrawn Thursday.
Those men have all leaned into Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 's call to “Make
America Healthy Again,” a controversial effort to redesign the nation's
food supply, reject vaccine mandates and cast doubt on some
long-established scientific research.
“Americans need better research on healthy lifestyle choices from
unbiased scientists,” Oz wrote late last year in a social media post
praising Kennedy's nomination to be the nation's health secretary.
This isn't Oz's first time testifying before senators. In 2014, several
senators scolded him during a hearing about the questionable weight loss
products he hawked on his television show.
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AP Health Writer Tom Murphy contributed to this report from
Indianapolis.
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