Name: Melanie Fontes Rainer
New title: Acting director of the HHS Office of Civil Rights
Previous title: Counselor to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra
Fontes Rainer will replace Lisa Pino, who oversaw rulemaking related to patient safety, reproductive rights and other healthcare issues and issued policy regarding health equity, long COVID and firearm injury and death prevention, the agency said in an emailed statement.
Fontes Rainer was appointed by the Biden administration in May 2021 as counselor to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. Before that, she worked with Becerra when he was California attorney general, and has also served as adviser to several Senate committees.
The OCR is tasked with enforcing HIPAA rules, data breach notification rules and civil rights laws among other duties.