[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 193 (Tuesday, November 28, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1603]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    IN RECOGNITION OF SHARON LEVINE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JACKIE SPEIER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 28, 2017

  Ms. SPEIER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Dr. Sharon Levine, an 
exceptional healthcare leader who has strived every day of her career 
to move our healthcare system forward to provide better access, quality 
and coverage. I've known Dr. Levine for many years and had the great 
honor to work with her. Dr. Levine was often the voice of Kaiser as the 
sponsor or supporter of major health care legislation I offered while 
in the California State Assembly and Senate. When it came to 
reproductive health issues, Dr. Levine offered compelling testimony on 
why the bills were necessary. I often marveled at the ability Dr. 
Levine had at dispelling myths and misperceptions Members had on 
particular issues without making them look ignorant.
  Dr. Levine recently retired from a remarkable, more than 40-year-long 
career with Kaiser Permanente. She had served in an executive 
leadership role for the Permanente Medical Group since 1991. In 2015, 
Dr. Levine accepted the role of Executive Vice President for External 
Affairs for the Permanente Medical Group, a position she held until her 
retirement.
  Dr. Levine graduated from Tufts University School of Medicine and 
began her medical career in pediatrics at the Georgetown University 
Community Health Plan. In 1977, she joined the Permanente Medical Group 
as a pediatrician and spent the next four decades serving residents of 
northern California.
  In addition to being an invaluable doctor to her patients, Dr. Levine 
has educated physicians and clinicians throughout California and the 
Kaiser Permanente system, inspiring and coaching them to deliver better 
care and about ways to improve our healthcare system. One of her 
important responsibilities was to ensure that Kaiser Permanente's 
prescribing and pharmacy policies were patient-centered and that they 
were rooted in common sense, with physicians closely involved in 
promoting both excellent quality and sound clinical management. Her 
leadership on this issue greatly benefited Kaiser Permanente members, 
patients and customers.
  Dr. Levine's contributions have had an impact beyond California 
through her service on numerous boards of directors, including serving 
on the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute, the Medical Board 
of California, the Institute for Medical Quality and the Insure the 
Uninsured Project. She has passionately advocated for public policy 
that ensures physicians are at the center of critical decisions that 
affect patients, whether in the exam room, in the board room, in the 
hearing room or in the auditorium, where the next generation of health 
care leaders learn about what works in American health care and what 
still needs to be improved.
  Dr. Levine will continue to play an important role in the medical 
community. She was recently selected to serve as board member of the 
newly established Kaiser Permanente School of Medicine. In that role 
she will ensure that the curriculum of this medical school will be of 
the highest quality. She will also be a mentor to many aspiring 
physicians who share her lifelong commitment to medicine.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask the Members of the House of Representatives to 
rise with me to honor Dr. Sharon Levine, a remarkable doctor, educator 
and advocate whose leadership and friendship I deeply value. While she 
will be missed by her Kaiser Permanente family, we can all feel assured 
that her contributions have permanently improved our current system. If 
we had more leaders like Dr. Levine in our communities we would no 
doubt have a better healthcare system and healthier Americans.

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