• Jason Weida, Interim Secretary of the Agency for Health Care Administration, testified before the Senate Committee on Health Policy for confirmation of his permanent appointment.
• Weida’s vision for the agency includes prioritizing healthy birth outcomes for women, bolstering childhood and teenage mental health programs, expanding home and community-based services, and collaborating with First Lady Casey DeSantis on healthcare and cancer research initiatives.
• The agency is also in the process of awarding multi-billion dollar contracts to Medicaid managed-care providers, which Weida identified as one of the most important tasks for the agency in the next year or year and a half.

Jason Weida, the Interim Secretary of the Agency for Health Care Administration, testified before the Senate Committee on Health Policy on Thursday to seek confirmation for his permanent appointment to the position. Weida was originally named as interim in January with an expectation that he would be a top contender to secure the permanent role.

During his testimony before the committee, Weida delineated his vision for the agency under his leadership, which encompasses prioritizing the enhancement of healthy birth outcomes for women across the state.

“It’s important because the Florida Medicaid program covers approximately fifty percent of all births in this state,” said Weida. “And so, just by working on those matters in the Medicaid program, you can have a fairly large impact on birth outcomes as a whole.”

Recognizing the growing demand for behavioral health services, Weida also emphasized the necessity of bolstering childhood and teenage mental health programs. He further pointed to the importance of expanding home and community-based services, while also highlighting an agency goal of continued collaboration with First Lady Casey DeSantis on her healthcare and cancer research initiatives.

The governmental agency is also in the midst of a complex process of awarding multi-billion dollar contracts to Medicaid managed-care providers who will serve millions of Florida families in the Medicaid program.

“Every six years the agency reprocures our managed care organizations. This process formally began two days ago – Tuesday on April 11th – when we issued the invitation to negotiate,” said Weida. “That is, frankly, one of the most important things the agency will be working on in the next year or year and a half.”

According to his profile, Weida, a former assistant U.S. attorney, worked to manage Medicaid policy within the organization before being named Chief of Staff. As Chief of Staff, Weida coordinated Medicaid and Health Care Regulation policy with other state agencies, the legislature, and the federal government.

Weida’s confirmation comes after Simone Marstiller, who served the secretary role since 2021, stepped down from the position ahead of Florida’s lobbying ban.

“I look forward to continuing the work that we have begun with the governor and the First Lady, as well as the members of this committee and the legislature as a whole as we all do our best to improve healthcare for all Floridians,” said Weida.