NHSA Membership Offers Support for Xavier Becerra Confirmation

February 24, 2021

This week, NHSA sent two letters, backed by NHSA member support, to Congress in support of the confirmation of Xavier Becerra as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. The letters were addressed to the Senate Committee on Finance and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions.

The National Human Services Assembly (NHSA) offers its enthusiastic support for the confirmation of Xavier Becerra as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. NHSA members are 35 of the nation’s largest human services organizations which together, with their local service networks, collectively serve nearly every household in America—as consumers of services, donors, or volunteers. NHSA members comprise a $32 billion sector that employs some 800,000 workers, operating from over 100,000 locations.

In the midst of a global pandemic NHSA calls on the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance to advance the confirmation of Xavier Becerra to the full Senate without delay. As a twelve term Congressman and current California State Attorney General (AG), Mr. Becerra has been a champion of equity, fostering human services, and expanding access to quality healthcare for all.

Both his life experiences and professional career have given him a deep understanding of the importance and role of human services to foster opportunity for all. Mr. Becerra was a leader on the Ways and Means Committee for reauthorization of the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Act and efforts to reform TANF to make poverty reduction an explicit purpose of the program. His work to incorporate support in TANF for human services demonstrate his commitment to advance opportunity for all families and children. Furthermore, as a key architect of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and a member of the House Ways and Means Committee he showed a deep understanding of the financing of health care; and, as California AG was a national leader in state efforts to protect the ACA.

As the head of a massive state agency in the largest state, Mr. Becerra has the experience of overseeing an agency larger than some federal departments. If confirmed, he would be the first Latino to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), making his confirmation both critical and historic.

The people of the United States deserve a champion who will effectively direct the urgent task of overseeing the agency that will guide the nation out of this pandemic. We need a leader of DHHS who understands that equity must be a guiding principle in meeting the nation’s health and human services challenges, including reversing the chapter of harming immigrant children and ensuring that family reunification gets accomplished without delay. Xavier Becerra is uniquely qualified to lead DHHS to meet the challenges our nation is facing.

NHSA, on behalf of our national human services organization members and those we serve, strongly urge members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance to vote “yes” on the nomination of Xavier Becerra to be the 25th Secretary of Health and Human Services. The people of the United States need a leader with extensive direct experience improving our nation’s health and human services systems, and one who is dedicated to ensuring equity in advancing our national health and well-being.

Sincerely,

Jeff Fleisher
Chair, Board of Directors
National Human Services Assembly

Membership of the National Human Services Assembly —