Ron Wyden Torches Mehmet Oz, Warns Colleagues They Will 'Own The Consequences' If They Confirm Him

2 days ago

During remarks on the Senate floor Thursday, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) spoke about Trump's nominee for CMS Administrator, Mehmet Oz.

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Transcript

00:00Senator from Oregon is recognized. Mr. President ahead of the Senate's final vote on the

00:05nomination of Dr. Mehmet Oz to head up the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid

00:09Services, I want to just take a couple of minutes to describe what's at stake with

00:13this vote. Dr. Oz is the second Trump nominee to pass through the Senate

00:20Finance Committee with a record of dodging Medicare and Social Security

00:25taxes. That means, if confirmed, the person running the Medicare program

00:31thinks it's acceptable to not pay the taxes he owes into the programs he's

00:38running. Let me repeat that. If confirmed, the person running the Medicare program

00:45thinks it's acceptable to not pay the taxes he owes into the program he's

00:50running. Now, in addition, during the consideration of this nominee, I pressed

01:00Dr. Oz on whether he believes nursing homes ought to be staffed with a

01:04registered nurse 24-7. Once again, Dr. Oz refused to answer my question. Mr. President,

01:12he claimed it was a complicated question. Not really, I told him. An AI chatbot

01:20paid for by private equity isn't going to take your mom to the bathroom or bring

01:26your grandpa his meals every day. I don't think it's at all complicated whether

01:31there ought to be a nurse on staff at every single nursing home. Dr. Oz is

01:36certainly very able on television, but seems to have no understanding that

01:41technology is no replacement for real nurses and real medical staff. That

01:48attitude is going to have a real impact as Donald Trump and Republicans in the

01:51Congress pursue nearly $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts to achieve their

01:56billionaire tax breaks, which House Republicans have already passed. Several

02:01weeks ago, Senate Republicans confirmed one of Trump's most unqualified and

02:05dangerous nominees to date, RFK, Jr., who would be heading up America's

02:12health care at HHS. He was confirmed as well. Now our country is facing the

02:18biggest measles outbreak in decades, while the Trump administration touts the

02:22benefits of cod liver oil and convinces parents not to vaccinate their kids. The

02:29country has heard tragic tales of families following RFK, Jr.'s advice on

02:34unproven alternative treatments for measles that end up sending kids to

02:40hospitals. And just this week, he abruptly fired more than 10,000 public health

02:44workers, many of whom reportedly helped seniors navigate insurance plans when

02:49they were denied care or provide oversight over nursing homes. Everything

02:54this administration is doing is an effort to make you and your family less

03:00safe. Dr. Oz, unfortunately, has been out there peddling over the years

03:05unproven cures and treatments and encouraging people to ignore proven

03:10facts and science. The dangers of promoting unqualified wellness grifters

03:16to be in charge of health care in our country is not just a talking point.

03:21These are real and deadly matters. This week, Donald Trump and Senate Republicans

03:27are gearing up to pass their massive tax giveaway to billionaires and

03:31corporations. They're paying for it by gutting Medicaid and cutting off the

03:34services that millions of Americans rely on. Food stamps, Meals on Wheels, and

03:40Head Start are all on the chopping block, just so billionaires can go out and buy

03:45things like more yachts. These cuts to Medicaid are going to be devastating for

03:50kids and people with disabilities. It can destroy care in nursing homes, as we know

03:55it. It will rip basic care away from seniors and kids. Dr. Oz would be

04:01responsible for executing the destruction brought down on the Medicaid

04:05program by the cuts Republicans are preparing to make. And there would be

04:10premium hikes, let me mention that, premium hikes for everybody else who

04:15gets their insurance to the marketplace when Republicans take away the tax

04:19credits that lower premiums. During his confirmation hearing, I gave Dr. Oz the

04:24opportunity to go on the record and reassure the American people he

04:29wouldn't go along with the Republican scheme to rip away health care. He

04:34refused. So I also asked Dr. Oz if he was confirmed, would he travel to Malheur

04:41County in my home state? It's an overwhelmingly rural and red county and

04:46it also has the most recipients of Medicaid of any county in Oregon. Dr. Oz

04:52agreed to come to Malheur County and explain Trump's catastrophic cuts face

04:57to face with Oregonians. I'm gonna hold him to that. He's gonna have to answer to

05:03the people of Oregon and Malheur County about these inhumane policies.

05:07Republicans are full steam ahead with their plans to gut Americans health care

05:11and put for-profit insurance companies and private equity firms in charge of

05:16Americans health. So here's the real question with respect to this vote

05:22that'll be coming up. What is at stake on the Mehmet Oz vote? What's at stake is

05:28whether your aging parents can be safe in their nursing home. What's at stake is

05:33whether your kids can go see a doctor. What's at stake is the very health and

05:37well-being of your family. By supporting the Oz nomination, Republicans are

05:42sending a very clear message that they're a lot more afraid of Donald

05:45Trump than having to answer to their own constituents. Every member of this

05:50body that votes to confirm Dr. Oz is going to own the consequences of this

05:55decision, those consequences that I spelled out. I yield the floor. I urge the

05:59Senate to oppose this nomination when we vote later.

Ron Wyden Torches Mehmet Oz, Warns Colleagues They Will 'Own The Consequences' If They Confirm Him

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