1. United States
2. Md.
3. Letter

I’m writing to express my opposition to President Trump’s nominee for the Inspector General of the HHS, Thomas March Bell. The HHS IG holds a critical responsibility in protecting the integrity of HHS programs as well as the health and welfare of the people HHS serves. This role is essential for safeguarding taxpayer dollars and ensuring that HHS initiatives operate both effectively and ethically. It requires a person who demonstrates impartiality, independence, and the utmost ethical standards. Mr. Bell has proven that he has none of these essential qualities. He has a long and troubling history of unethical conduct, extreme partisanship, and abuse of power that has harmed taxpayers, spread misinformation, and put reproductive health care providers at risk. In 1997, Bell was asked to resign as deputy director of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality after a legislative audit uncovered his misappropriation of $8,000 in taxpayer funds. In 2015, Bell led a highly partisan House investigation of reproductive health care providers based on widely discredited and debunked accusations by anti-abortion groups. During the first Trump Administration, Bell helped create HHS’s “Division for Conscience and Religious Freedom,” which was used to embolden health care providers to deny access to critical and even life-saving reproductive health care. Additionally, during Bell’s tenure as Chief of Staff for the HHS Office for Civil Rights, the administration targeted states that refused to fund anti-abortion centers, which misled and endangered pregnant individuals. In this role, he also contributed to efforts to limit federal protections for gender identity under Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, weakening protections for transgender people who experience discrimination. IGs are historically nonpartisan watchdogs, and HHS’s IG should be dedicated to transparency and impartiality. Given this history, it is difficult to believe that Mr. Bell has developed the unbiased, moral, and ethical character necessary for the role of Inspector General. For these reasons, I urge the Senate to reject the nomination of Thomas March Bell for HHS Inspector General. Thanks.