The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The secretary is a member of the United States Cabinet. The office was formerly Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. In 1980, the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was renamed the Department of Health and Human Services, and its education functions and Rehabilitation Services Administration were transferred to the new United States Department of Education. Patricia Roberts Harris headed the department before and after it was renamed. Nominations to the office of Secretary of HHS are referred to the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and the United States Senate Committee on Finance, which has jurisdiction over Medicare and Medicaid, before confirmation is considered by the full United States Senate. Secretary of Health and Human Services is a level I position in the Executive Schedule, thus earning a salary of US$246,400, as of January 2024. Xavier Becerra has served as the 25th United States secretary of health and human services since March 19, 2021, the first person of Latino descent to hold the post.

Duties

The duties of the secretary revolve around human conditions and concerns in the United States. This includes advising the president on matters of health, welfare, and income security programs. The secretary strives to administer the Department of Health and Human Services to carry out approved programs and make the public aware of the objectives of the department. The Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) was reorganized into a Department of Education and a Department of Health and Human Services (US DHHS). The Department of Health and Human Services oversees 11 agencies including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

List of secretaries

(9) (15) (2) Status {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

Health, education, and welfare

!No. !Portrait !Name !State of residence !Took office !Left office !colspan=2 |President(s) !style="background: ;" |1 !style="background: ;" |2 !style="background: ;" |3 !style="background: ;" |4 !rowspan=2 style="background: ;" |5 !style="background: ;" |6 !style="background: ;" |7 !style="background: ;" |8 !style="background: ;" |9 !rowspan=2 style="background: ;" |10 !style="background: ;" |11 !style="background: ;" |12 !style="background: ;" |13

Health and human services

!No. !Portrait !Name !State of residence !Took office !Left office !colspan=2 |President(s) !style="background: ;" |13 ! style="background: ;" |14 !style="background: ;" |15 ! style="background: ;" |16 !style="background: ;" |17 !style="background: ;" |18 !style="background: ;" |19 !style="background: ;" |20 !style="background:#E6E6AA;" |– !style="background: ;" |21 !style="background: ;" |22 !style="background:#E6E6AA;" |– !style="background: ;" |23 !style="background:#E6E6AA;" |– !style="background:#E6E6AA;" |– !style="background: ;" |24 !style="background:#E6E6AA;" |– !style="background: ;" |25

Line of succession

The line of succession for the secretary of health and human services is as follows: