Department of Health and Human Services
Secretary:	Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Year created:	1979
Official website:	HHS.gov

Executive Departments of the United States

Executive DepartmentsDepartment of State •Department of the Treasury •Department of Defense •Department of Justice •Department of the Interior •Department of Agriculture •Department of Commerce •Department of Labor •Department of Health and Human Services •Department of Housing and Urban Development •Department of Transportation •Department of Energy •Department of Education •Department of Veterans Affairs •Department of Homeland Security

Department SecretariesMarco Rubio •Scott Bessent •Pete Hegseth •Pam Bondi •Doug Burgum •Brooke Rollins •Lori Chavez-DeRemer •Robert F. Kennedy Jr. •Scott Turner •Howard Lutnick •Sean Duffy •Chris Wright •Linda McMahon •Doug Collins •Kristi Noem

TheDepartment of Health and Human Services is a United States executive department established in 1979. The department was formed for "protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves."^[1][2]

The department oversees various agencies including, theCenters for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), theFood and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is the secretary of health and human services.Click here to learn more about his confirmation process.

History

The department was formed as the Cabinet-level Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) in 1953 under President Dwight D. Eisenhower. In 1979 theDepartment of Education split from HEW, and the Department of Health and Human Services was formed. Below is a list of events throughout the department's history:^[1]

• 1953: Salk polio vaccine licensed
• 1964: First Surgeon General's report on smoking and health
• 1965: Medicare and Medicaid programs created
• 1979: Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Education split from (HEW)
• 1984: National Organ Transplantation Act became law
• 1990: Human Genome Project established
• 1996: Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) became law
• 1997: State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) created
• 1999: Anti-bioterrorism initiative launched
• 2003: Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act enacted
• 2010:Affordable Care Act (ACA) became law

Mission

According to the Department of Health and Human Services' website:^[2]

Leadership

Administrative State
Read more about theadministrative state on Ballotpedia.

The current secretary of health and human services isRobert F. Kennedy Jr.. The secretary of health and human services advises the president on "health, welfare, and income security plans, policies, and programs of the Federal Government."^[4] The duties of the secretary of health and human services include:

• Overseeing a budget and employees;
• Directing department staff in carrying out the approved programs and activities of the department;
• Promoting general public understanding of the department's goals, programs, and objectives; and
• Administering these functions through 12 operating agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Center for Disease Control (CDC), National Institutes of Health (NIH), and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).^[4]

Note: Votes marked "N/A" represent voice votes or unrecorded votes.

Organizational chart

Click here to view the HHS organizational chart.

Responsibilities

HHS is responsible for maintaining programs aimed at enhancing “the health and well-being of all Americans, by providing for effective health and human services and by fostering sound, sustained advances in the sciences underlying medicine, public health, and social services,” according to the department’s mission. HHS collaborates with other federal departments and agencies to pursue cross-agency collaborations on high-priority issues. HHS works with state, tribal, local, and U.S. territorial governments to administer programs, provide federal funds, and offer technical assistance for services that aim to improve the well-being of individuals, families, and communities.^[5][6]

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

See also:Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

TheCenters for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) oversees federal healthcare-related programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and the health insurance exchanges created by theAffordable Care Act. More than 20 different offices and divisions within the organization track the financial operations of healthcare programs or investigate efficiency improvements through new technology.^[7]

For more information about the history, structure, and responsibilities of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services,click here.

Child Care and Development Fund

The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) is authorized by the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 and Section 418 of theSocial Security Act of 1935. CCDF “assists low-income families in obtaining child care so they can work or attend training/education. The program also improves the quality of child care, and promotes coordination among early childhood development and afterschool programs,” according to HHS. The Office of Child Care within HHS oversees the distribution of federal CCDF block grants to the states. CCDF programs are then administered by states, territories, and tribes.^[8]

CCDF contracts with providers to offer subsidized child care services to eligible families through certificates, vouchers, or grants. States have the authority to set income eligibility at or below 85 percent of the state median income and may set the maximum age for children at or below 13 years of age, or at or below 19 years of age if children have special needs, according to the Urban Institute. County governments are responsible for administering CCDF in at least eight states (Colorado, Minnesota, North Carolina, North Dakota, New York, Ohio, Virginia, and Wisconsin).

Role of Child Care and Development Fund in work requirements for child care subsidies

See also:Arguments about work requirements for public assistance programs

States are responsible for defining the activities that qualify a family for assistance through CCDF, such aswork requirements, education participation, and community service. Employment is an approved activity for CCDF funding in every state and some states also approve subsidies for parents participating in education and training activities. Working, periods of job search, self-employment, attending job training or education-related activities, foster care, and subsidized guardianship are activities that meet eligibility standards for CCDF subsidies in different states. State agencies have flexibility in determining eligibility for CCDF subsidies: “Lead Agencies have flexibility to consider children’s developmental needs and specific family circumstances, such as jobs requiring split work schedules, breaks between education courses, and sleep time for parents who work multiple jobs or have nontraditional work hours.”^[9][10][11]

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the termsUnited States Department of Health and Human Services. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

See also

• Alex Azar

External links

• Official Department of Health and Human Services website
• Official Facebook page
• Official Twitter page
• Official Youtube channel

Footnotes

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United States Terms Adjudication (administrative state) •Administrative judge •Administrative law •Administrative law judge •Administrative state •Arbitrary-or-capricious test •Auer deference •Barrier to entry •Bootleggers and Baptists •Chevron deference (doctrine) •Civil servant •Civil service •Code of Federal Regulations •Codify (administrative state) •Comment period •Compliance costs •Congressional Record •Coordination (administrative state) •Deference (administrative state) •Direct and indirect costs (administrative state) •Enabling statute •Ex parte communication (administrative state) •Executive agency •Federal law •Federal Register •Federalism •Final rule •Formal rulemaking •Formalism (law) •Functionalism (law) •Guidance (administrative state) •Hybrid rulemaking •Incorporation by reference •Independent federal agency •Informal rulemaking •Joint resolution of disapproval (administrative state) •Major rule •Negotiated rulemaking •Nondelegation doctrine •OIRA prompt letter •Organic statute •Pragmatism (law) •Precautionary principle •Promulgate •Proposed rule •Publication rulemaking •Regulatory budget •Regulatory capture •Regulatory dark matter •Regulatory impact analysis •Regulatory policy officer •Regulatory reform officer •Regulatory review •Rent seeking •Retrospective regulatory review •Risk assessment (administrative state) •Rulemaking •Separation of powers •Significant regulatory action •Skidmore deference •Statutory authority •Substantive law and procedural law •Sue and settle •Sunset provision •Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions •United States Code •United States Statutes at Large Bibliography "Administrative Law - The 20th Century Bequeaths an 'Illegitimate Exotic' in Full and Terrifying Flower" by Stephen P. Dresch (2000) "Confronting the Administrative Threat" by Philip Hamburger and Tony Mills (2017) "Constitutionalism after the New Deal" by Cass R. Sunstein (1987) Federalist No. 23 by Alexander Hamilton (1787) "From Administrative State to Constitutional Government" by Joseph Postell (2012) "Interring the Nondelegation Doctrine" by Eric A. Posner and Adrian Vermeule (2002) "Rulemaking as Legislating" by Kathryn Watts (2015) "The Checks & Balances of the Regulatory State" by Paul R. Verkuil (2016) "The Myth of the Nondelegation Doctrine" by Keith E. Whittington and Jason Iuliano (2017) "The Progressive Origins of the Administrative State: Wilson, Goodnow, and Landis" by Ronald J. Pestritto (2007) "The Rise and Rise of the Administrative State" by Gary Lawson (1994) "The Study of Administration" by Woodrow Wilson (1887) "The Threat to Liberty" by Steven F. Hayward (2017) "Why the Modern Administrative State Is Inconsistent with the Rule of Law" by Richard A. Epstein (2008) Agencies Administrative Conference of the United States •United States Civil Service Commission •U.S. Government Accountability Office •U.S. Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs •U.S. Office of Management and Budget