Former HHS Secretary Considering Presidential Run

Former HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson on Wednesday in Iowa said that he might seek the 2008 Republican presidential nomination and predicted that health care and energy would become the top two issues in the presidential race, the Des Moines Register reports. In an interview after a speech for Iowans for Wellness and Prevention, Thompson, who served as governor of Wisconsin from 1987 through 2001, said he will establish an exploratory committee and will make a decision next spring about whether to seek the nomination.

Thompson said, "I don't think anybody's got a better handle on health care than me."

During the speech, which Pfizer sponsored, Thompson said the U.S. health care system would implode by 2013 without major reforms. He also promoted campaigns to fight smoking and obesity and to prevent and manage chronic diseases, such as diabetes (Leys, Des Moines Register, 11/16).