WASHINGTON, DC -- Mary Kay Henry, president of the Service Employees International Union, offered this statement about Thursday's hearing on Office of Management and Budget Director (OMB) Sylvia Mathews Burwell's nomination to serve as the next secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), which will be the subject of a hearing by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (HELP):

"With her many years of work on both domestic and global healthcare priorities, OMB Director Burwell is uniquely qualified to be a champion for the central role that quality, affordable healthcare plays in the everyday lives and aspirations of working people.

"The role of health secretary is a crucial one at this pivotal moment of transition -- in terms of the Affordable Care Act and especially its Medicaid coverage that far too many states are still denying their citizens. We urge Congress not to sully Burwell's nomination with political attacks that could hurt real people if they succeed in the long run.

"Millions of hard-working Americans will benefit from Burwell's leadership and extensive management experience when she becomes director of HHS, the federal agency most involved with our nation's vital health services, the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid and Medicare.

"We support Sylvia Mathews Burwell as the next leader of HHS and look forward to partnering with her in delivering on the promise that the healthcare law holds for all Americans, and especially for people who are uninsured or who have pre-existing conditions."

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