Recently, President-elect Joe Biden announced his pick of California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Becerra served as a lead in the defense in Texas v. California, in which several GOP-run states seek to overturn the Affordable Care Act. He has also taken stances on pharmaceutical intellectual property, defending California’s “pay-for-delay” law and calling for the federal government to exercise “march-in” rights on COVID-19 therapeutics. If confirmed, Becerra would be the nation’s first Latino HHS Secretary.
More on Becerra
Becerra became California’s Attorney General after a 24-year career in the House and was appointed to the role after his predecessor, Kamala Harris, won election to the U.S. Senate. In the House, Becerra chaired the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and served on the Ways & Means Committee, including on the Health Subcommittee, during the passage of the Affordable Care Act. Before running for the House, Becerra served as a Deputy Attorney General in the California Department of Justice and was elected to one term in the State Assembly.
Positions
As California attorney general, he was among a group of 23 state attorneys general leading lawsuits against the Trump administration over a rule the states say eliminated healthcare protections for transgender Americans. He also led an effort by 20 states and the District of Columbia in asking the Supreme Court to intervene early in an ongoing case that holds the Affordable Care Act’s fate in the balance.
In 2019, hospital system Sutter Health reached a $575 million settlement with the state of California and a major union trust over charges by the state they drove up healthcare prices. The settlement also required Sutter Health to take several steps to end anticompetitive behavior including capping out-of-network costs and increasing transparency. Last year, he led legal action that resulted in a nearly $70 million settlement with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and Endo Pharmaceuticals over allegations that they entered into pay-for-delay agreements.
As also reported, he may not necessarily be good news for the drug industry. Becerra has been a vocal advocate for using an obscure patent law to bring cheaper versions of Gilead’s Covid-19 treatment, remdesivir, to market. The policy, known as march-in rights, would allow other drug makers to make remdesivir even though Gilead holds the exclusive right to manufacture the drug.