The White House is reportedly discussing a plan to replace HHS chief Azar

Alex Azar.
(Image credit: KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

It may seem unlikely that the White House would implement any major departmental leadership changes during a global health crisis, especially in the Department of Health and Human Services, but don't count it out just yet.

Though they're indeed reluctant to complete any major shakeups during the coronavirus pandemic, White House officials are discussing a plan to replace HHS Secretary Alex Azar, Politico and The Wall Street Journal report. Criticism of Azar's role has reportedly mounted in recent weeks, especially after Director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority Rick Bright was moved to a National Institutes of Health position, a transfer which Bright described as a form of retaliation, reportedly rattling some administration officials.

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.