Optimism in Times of Turbulence
Kathleen Sebelius on improving the nation’s health
Kathleen Sebelius is no stranger to the limelight. Having made unprecedented contributions to the health of Americans as the Insurance Commissioner and Governor of Kansas and the 21st United States Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), she has lived through her fair share of storms too.
On October 21st 2014, the former HHS Secretary shared her secrets on successful leadership to a studio filled with hopeful future leaders at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Forbes magazine named Secretary Sebelius the 25th most powerful woman in the world in 2013, and she is perhaps most famous for spearheading President Barack Obama’s Affordable Healthcare Act (ACA). At the receiving end of a public outcry following the rocky launch of the health insurance exchange website in late 2013, Sebelius stepped down as Secretary just months after the start of the open enrollment period. Nevertheless, she has always remained calm through the storm, claiming that optimism is part of her DNA.
After all, she is a democrat from Kansas and a pro-choice Catholic.
Nearly 8 million Americans with no previous health insurance have gained coverage through marketplaces put in place by the ACA. Although Sebelius highlights health care reform as a wonderful legacy, she also described it as one of the most difficult times in her career.
“The roll-out was awful … like buying an airline ticket through a fax machine.”
Reflecting upon the technical difficulties faced by the health exchange website just over a year after its launch, Sebelius admitted that better coordination was required. The former secretary stressed the importance of accountability to the public during such a critical period:
“We had to own it, apologize for it, and fix it.”
Indeed, fixing the website in a matter of 8 weeks was a full-time, around-the-clock operation that required strong leadership. In her own words, “there weren’t going to be two bites at this apple”.
Surprisingly, Sebelius prefers state-level leadership over her role as HHS Secretary, proclaiming that “being governor is the best job as a politician.” She commended states such as Vermont, Arkansas and Maine, who are currently testing new ways of financing and delivering health care, and noted that “states have always been laboratories of innovation, well ahead of the federal government.” The former secretary shared her confidence that such state-level experiments will inform better health care in the future, also at the government level.
Secretary Sebelius projected a hopeful message to the new generation of public health leaders, stating, “You are entering the health field at a historic time of delivery system reform.”
In parting words, the former Secretary listed two key ingredients to a successful career: surrounding yourself with the best mentors and being a risk-taker. Kathleen Sebelius’ message to future public health leaders was loud and clear:
“Hurry up, study hard — and get ready. We need you.”
For more from the Voices in Leadership (@VoicesHSPH) series at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (@HarvardHSPH), visit www.hsph.harvard.edu/voices.
Story edited by Emilia Ling
