Thomas March Bell
As Inspector General, Bell will oversee the efficiency and effectiveness of all HHS programs. Notably, he will oversee auditing, evaluation, and Office of Inspector General (OIG) investigations for the Medicaid program, the largest public payer of reproductive health services. Other investigations in his purview could include how federal funds are being used to support access to reproductive health care. Bell will also have considerable influence on waste, fraud, and abuse investigations despite his history of misusing government funds.
Top Red Flags
- Led a controversial and highly partisan Congressional investigation into Planned Parenthood. Despite finding no evidence of wrongdoing, the investigative panel still recommended defunding Planned Parenthood.
- Has ties to the leaders of extremist anti-abortion organizations.
- Helped create the Conscience and Religious Freedom Division within HHS that was used to weaken reproductive health care access during Trump’s first administration.
Statements
- Bell revealed during a panel, his belief that targeted lawsuits could be used to close abortion clinics. He stated, “their business model is fragile, any interference in their cash flow that we can bring through any kind of lawsuit … can shut down a whole state or a whole group of clinics.”
Publications
- Bell served as the Republican Staff Director and Chief Counsel for a controversial House Select Panel called the “Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives” that investigated unsubstantiated allegations against Planned Parenthood. The panel published a final report recommending that Congress defund Planned Parenthood, despite finding no evidence of wrongdoing. Bell worked closely with anti-abortion extremists throughout the investigation and later admitted that the panel’s long-term goal was to weaken Planned Parenthood.
Extremist Connections
- During the House investigation into Planned Parenthood, Bell admitted to being in regular contact with numerous anti-abortion activists, including Operation Rescue’s Troy Newman, Life Dynamics’ Mark Crutcher, and Center for Medical Progress’ David Daleiden.
- Bell served as Roger Severino’s Chief of Staff during the first Trump administration. Severino, who is vocally anti-abortion, authored the HHS section of Project 2025, which advocates for extreme abortion restrictions.
- While working under Roger Severino at HHS’ Office of Civil Rights (OCR), Bell helped to create the Division for Conscience and Religious Freedom, which implemented broad exceptions for health care providers to deny access to reproductive health care.
- During his tenure at OCR, Congressional Democrats wrote a letter to the HHS Secretary calling for Bell to be recused from any OCR case pertaining to “fetal tissue or abortion services” due to his prior anti-abortion work for the House Select Panel.
- Bell held leadership positions in Gary Bauer and Pat Robinson’s presidential campaigns, both of whom previously led the anti-abortion group Family Research Council.
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