WASHINGTON (CN) – President Donald Trump has tapped Eric Hargan to serve as acting Health and Human Services secretary.
The announcement comes a week after Hargan was as deputy secretary by the Senate on a 57-38 vote.
Hargan's appointment marks his second go-around at department, where he served in a variety of positions from 2003 to 2007.
After leaving government at the end of the George W. Bush administration, he practiced law in Chicago.
Trump's first Health and Human Services secretary, Tom Price, stepped down Sept. 29, after it was revealed he had used private charter planes for government travel.
Hargan is replacing Don Wright, who had been serving as acting secretary since Price's departure.
"Eric Hargan brings a wealth of knowledge, expertise and leadership experience to HHS," Wright said in a statement when Hargan was sworn in as deputy secretary last week.
"His commitment to public service and vast experience in the health care field will help guide the department as we advance President Trump's agenda on behalf of the American people. We look forward to working with deputy secretary Hargan to enhance and protect the health and well-being of all Americans," Wright said.
During his confirmation hearing last week, Hargan refused to tell the Senate Finance Committee whether or not he would keep parts of the Affordable Care Act intact.
Instead he told the senators “that’s a subject of a lot of dispute here on Capitol Hill.”
The Department of Health and Human Services is the main body that oversees operations and policy for the ACA insurance marketplace and conducts oversight for more than 100 million people enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid.
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