Meena Seshamani, Indian-American Physician Appointed As US Gov Medicare Director

Who is Meena Seshamani? Indian-American physician is the new Director of the US Centre for Medicare. This Indian American doctor's term commenced on July 6.

As the Director of the US Centre for Medicare, the onus of leading the centre's efforts in serving the people aged 65 or older will lie on her. She will also be responsible for serving the people with disabilities and with the end-stage renal disease that rely on Medicare coverage, a national health insurance program in the United States.

Honored to lead Medicare during this pivotal time. I will bring my experience as a doctor, a health system leader, and health policy expert to promote health equity, quality person-centered care, and affordability and sustainability. @CMSGov https://t.co/ubaU1pcT9G

— Meena Seshamani (@drmeenasesh) July 7, 2021

Here are some more facts to know about her.

1. She pursued a BA with Honours in Business Economics from Brown University, her MD from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. She later got a PhD in Health Economics from the University of Oxford. She was a Marshall Scholar there.

2. She completed her residency training in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She went on to practice as a head and neck surgeon at Kaiser Permanente in San Francisco, TOI reported.

3. The Indian-American doctor is said to have been trained as both a physician and as an economist. She has a sound understanding of how government functions and how the medical professionals think about populations.

4.  The 43-year-old was leading the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris transition Health and Human Services (HHS) agency review team.

5. She worked as Vice President of clinical care transformation at MedStar Health, where she implemented population health and value-based care initiatives. She also served on the senior leadership of the ten chosen hospitals.

6. Her vast experience also includes working as the Director of the Office of Health Reform at the US Department of Health and Human Services. There, she drove strategy and managed the implementation of the Affordable Care Act and delivery system reform.

7. She was leading population health efforts for the Maryland and Washington, DC-based health system when the pandemic hit.

8. Seshamani has also served in the Office of Health Reform, first as director of Policy Analysis and then as deputy director.

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