PBS高端访谈:因制定相关医疗改革法案,卫生部长的任命得到了歌颂

 　　JUDY WOODRUFF: The woman who will likely be the new face of the health care law testified today on Capitol Hill. Sylvia Mathews Burwell, the president's budget director, is Mr. Obama's nominee¹ to replace Kathleen Sebelius as secretary of health and human services.

　　Rarely is anything on Affordable² Care Act a bipartisan affair anymore in Congress, but Burwell was well-received by members on both sides of the aisle³.

　　SEN. LAMAR ALEXANDER, R, Tenn.: Ms. Burwell, you have a reputation for competence⁴. And I would respectfully suggest you're going to need it.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: That warning notwithstanding, Republicans, like Lamar Alexander, mostly used the hearing to take aim not at Burwell, but at the health care law.

　　SEN. LAMAR ALEXANDER: Republicans would like to repair the damage that Obamacare has done. We'd like to prevent future damage as responsibly and rapidly as we can.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: But Burwell didn't concede that point. Instead, in her opening statement, she argued the effects of the law have been positive.

　　SYLVIA MATHEWS BURWELL, Director, Office of Management and Budget: The department's work to ensure accessible, affordable, quality health care through the implementation⁵ of the Affordable Care Act is making a difference in the lives of our families and our communities, while strengthening the economy.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: If confirmed, Burwell would succeed Kathleen Sebelius, who announced her resignation last month. Republicans roundly criticized her for the botched rollout of the federal online insurance exchange last fall.

　　Today, South Carolina Republican Tim Scott pressed Burwell on whether she'd be an independent voice.

　　SEN. TIM SCOTT, R, S.C.: I would ask you simply, as secretary of HHS, will you in fact be the health and human services secretary for the American people, or will you be, as your predecessor⁶ has been, the ambassador of Obamacare?

　　SYLVIA MATHEWS BURWELL: I'm here to serve the American people. I'm part of the president's administration. I'm honored to be appointed. First and foremost, I serve the American people. I believe that the president and his policies are aligned⁷ with that and will work. But I am here to serve the American people.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: That line of questioning drew a strong rebuke⁸ from Iowa Democrat⁹ Tom Harkin, the chair of the committee.

　　SEN. TOM HARKIN, D, Chair, Health, Education, Labor¹⁰ and Pensions Committee: It is my — my opinion, based upon the years of work with Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary Sebelius, that she performed her job admirably, and that she was a responsible and attentive¹¹ secretary of health and human services, and carried out the law as we wrote it.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Democrats¹² also touted¹³ benefits of the law, and Connecticut's Chris Murphy zeroed in on Republican governors who've balked¹⁴ at embracing key provisions, such as expanding Medicaid.

　　SEN. CHRIS MURPHY, D, Conn.: What are the ways in which we can work in a flexible manner with these states as they maybe wake up to the reality of how well the implementation is going after the initial botched rollout? What are the ways in which we can work with some of the states that haven't done things like Connecticut to try to make this work in all 50 states, rather than just in the handful that have set up their own exchanges?

　　SYLVIA MATHEWS BURWELL: I think there are two things, and it does come back to the point about flexibility¹⁵, is one of the points. And I think what's important is to send a signal that folks are willing to have the conversations.

　　As I said, it's important, if there are fundamental principles, to articulate those in terms of the change you're trying to get, but be willing to have the conversations and hear the ideas.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Burwell's answers generally seemed to go down well. Some Republicans even spoke¹⁶ of her reputation for competence.

　　Before taking over at the Office of Management and Budget, she held leadership positions with the Wal-Mart Foundation and the Gates Foundation. She also served in the Clinton administration at the National Economic Council.

　　Richard Burr of North Carolina cited that background, saying he plans to support the nomination¹⁷.

　　SEN. RICHARD BURR, R, N.C.: It's because she doesn't come with a single experience that would make her a good secretary. She comes with a portfolio¹⁸ of experience that would make her a tremendous asset at addressing some of the challenges that that agency specific — that agency specifically and uniquely has.

　　HARI SREENIVASAN: Burwell also got an outside boost, when America's Health Insurance Plans, an industry trade group, issued a statement calling her uniquely qualified¹⁹. She still faces a separate confirmation²⁰ hearing before the Senate Finance Committee. That hearing has not yet been scheduled.

　　GWEN IFILL: The reporter on that story, of course, was Hari Sreenivasan.

　　As rocky as the rollout of healthcare.gov has been, a new report says the federal exchange was a bargain compared to the state-run marketplaces, which spent twice as much per enrollee²¹. That story is on our Rundown.

1 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

2 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

3 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

4 competence   

n.能力，胜任，称职

参考例句：

• This mess is a poor reflection on his competence.这种混乱情况说明他难当此任。
• These are matters within the competence of the court.这些是法院权限以内的事。

5 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

6 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

7 aligned   

adj.对齐的，均衡的

参考例句：

• Make sure the shelf is aligned with the top of the cupboard.务必使搁架与橱柜顶端对齐。

8 rebuke   

v.指责，非难，斥责 [反]praise

参考例句：

• He had to put up with a smart rebuke from the teacher.他不得不忍受老师的严厉指责。
• Even one minute's lateness would earn a stern rebuke.哪怕迟到一分钟也将受到严厉的斥责。

9 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

10 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

11 attentive   

adj.注意的，专心的；关心(别人)的，殷勤的

参考例句：

• She was very attentive to her guests.她对客人招待得十分周到。
• The speaker likes to have an attentive audience.演讲者喜欢注意力集中的听众。

12 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 touted   

v.兜售( tout的过去式和过去分词 )；招揽；侦查；探听赛马情报

参考例句：

• She's being touted as the next leader of the party. 她被吹捧为该党的下一任领导人。
• People said that he touted for his mother and sister. 据说，他给母亲和姐姐拉生意。 来自辞典例句

14 balked   

v.畏缩不前，犹豫( balk的过去式和过去分词 )；（指马）不肯跑

参考例句：

• He balked in his speech. 他忽然中断讲演。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• They balked the robber's plan. 他们使强盗的计划受到挫败。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

15 flexibility   

n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性

参考例句：

• Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
• The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。

16 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

17 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

18 portfolio   

n.公事包；文件夹；大臣及部长职位

参考例句：

• He remembered her because she was carrying a large portfolio.他因为她带着一个大公文包而记住了她。
• He resigned his portfolio.他辞去了大臣职务。

19 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

20 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

21 enrollee   

n.入会者；入学者；入伍者；名字被登入名单者

参考例句：

• Conclusion Generally speaking, the mental health state of enrollee is normal. 结论应征青年的心理健康状况总体正常。 来自互联网