Lloyd Dean, the head of Catholic Healthcare West and a key player in Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's health reform efforts in 2007, is being floated as a potential candidate to head the national Health and Human Services department.
From the Washington Post:
A New Name in HHS Mix: As deliberations over the next head of the department of Health and Human Services continue, a new name has emerged as a potential pick: Lloyd Dean. Dean, who is African American, is the head of Catholic Healthcare West, a non-profit health provider based in northern California, and is being pushed for the job by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. (Dean was named by Newsom to a committee that passed universal health care for San Francisco.) Add Dean's name to a list that still appears to be headed by Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius but also includes Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen and Obama presidential transition chief John Podesta.
In a 2008 interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, Dean didn't stand with either John McCain or Barack Obama on health care, saying, "We are just happy health care is at the forefront of both candidates' agendas."
Regarding his 2007 efforts with the Schwarzenegger administration, Dean said:
We worked very closely with the governor to try to do state reform. The governor said, "I'm going to make this a key agenda item," and he engaged folks like myself and all sort of constituencies - labor leaders, business. I believe it has to be a public-private partnership - not just government, but business, insurers, providers like myself, individuals - all of the constituencies have to come together to address this very complex issue.
Back in 2007, Dean even filled in for Schwarzenegger on his weekly radio address.
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