US President Donald Trump appointed the former Lebanese lawyer Alex Azar as minister of health and human services at a White House ceremony attended by members of the Azar family, vice president and other officials.
Trump praised Azar’s record and said optimistically that they will see a drop in the price of medicines from now on because Alex has served in the ministry and is well aware of the nature of the work.
He added that Alex knows perfectly well the impact of government policies on patients and as the director of major international pharmaceutical companies, and he brings private sector expertise and will implement policies that will help Americans receive high-quality health services.
US Vice President Pence held a swearing-in ceremony after the Senate approved Azar’s appointment.
For his part, Azar said in a speech to Trump that as a migrant from Lebanon looking to work in the service of the government, and the implementation of President’s policies and top priorities to force pharmaceutical companies to reduce prices as well as fight the crisis of addiction.
