Xavier Becerra is the 25th Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services and the first Latino to hold the office in the history of the United States. As Secretary, he carries out President Biden's vision to build a healthy America, and focuses on ensuring that all Americans have health security and access to healthcare.

First elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1992, Secretary Becerra served 12 terms in Congress. During his tenure, he was the first Latino to serve as a member of the Committee on Ways and Means. He also served as Chairman of his party's caucus, and as the Ranking Member of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security and as a Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Health.

As a member of the Ways and Means Committee, Secretary Becerra introduced legislation -- the Medicare Savings Programs Improvement Act of 2007 -- that expanded cost-sharing subsidies for low-income seniors who receive both Medicare and Medicaid benefits by increasing the amount of resources they could receive. He championed provisions of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 to require physicians who perform imaging to be accredited and trained to ensure patient safety. And he was one of the original cosponsors of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), which strengthened Medicare and lowered costs for seniors.

As Attorney General of California, Secretary Becerra helped to promote competition by taking on pharmaceutical companies who restricted competition through "pay-for-delay" schemes. He also held several companies legally accountable for not protecting patients' health information. During the pandemic, he used his authority to protect California workers from exposure to COVID-19 and secured key safeguards for frontline health care workers' rights. In addition, he cracked down on Medicare and Medicaid fraud, acted to combat the opioid crisis, won an unprecedented $575 million antitrust settlement against one of the largest health systems in California, and led the three-year federal court fight to save the ACA and with it, the protections of the 133 million Americans with preexisting conditions.

Secretary Becerra began his legal career in 1984, working in a legal services office representing the mentally ill.

Born in Sacramento, Secretary Becerra is the son of working-class parents. He was the first in his family to receive a four-year degree, earning his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Stanford University. He earned his Juris Doctorate from Stanford Law School. His mother was born in Jalisco, Mexico and immigrated to the United States after marrying his father, a day laborer turned construction worker. He is married to Dr. Carolina Reyes, with whom he has three daughters.

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