WASHINGTON, D.C.— Louisiana Department of Health Secretary Alan Levine will testify December 3, 2009, before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform at a hearing entitled "Post-Katrina Recovery: Restoring Health Care in the New Orleans Region."

Levine, who has served two states as health secretary and operated public and private hospitals and health systems, will be joined by a number of health care experts, including:

  • Cindy Bascetta, Director, Health Care, U.S. Government Accountability Office
  • Diane Rowland, Sc.D. Executive Vice President, The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation
  • Donald T. Erwin, M.D. President/ CEO, Nephrology, Saint Thomas Community Health Center
  • Michael G. Griffin, Daughters of Charity Services of New Orleans, President & CEO
  • Alice Craft-Kerney, R.N. BSN, Executive Director, Lower 9th Ward Health Clinic
  • Karen DeSalvo, M.D. MPH MSc, Vice Dean, Community Affairs and Health Policy, Covenant House Clinic, Tulane University School of Medicine
  • Roxane A. Townsend, M.D. Assistant Vice President Health Systems, University Hospital, Louisiana State University System
  • Joia Creer-Perry, M.D. FACOG, Director of Clinical Services, Health Department City of New Orleans
  • Clayton Williams, MPH, Director, Louisiana Public Health Institute

The hearing will begin at 10 a.m. (9 a.m. CST) on Thursday, December 3, and can be watched on the Internet at http://oversight.house.gov/index.php?option=com_jcalpro&Itemid=1&extmode=view&extid=101