Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan has appointed Robert Moffit, a senior fellow in The Heritage Foundation's Center for Health Policy Studies, as chairman of the Maryland Health Care Commission.

Subject to Maryland law, Moffit will oversee and enforce state policies to promote health care cost control, access to insurance coverage and care, and to improve the quality of care delivered in Maryland hospitals and nursing homes.

Moffit will also be pressing a strong regulatory reform agenda to reduce costly and unnecessary regulations, as well as promoting the transparency of medical prices while providing the public with sound information on the quality of hospital services.

Moffit is well prepared for the job, having served on this commission during former Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich’s term and then when Hogan was elected.

Last week, The Washington Post called Moffit “a leading critic of the Obama administration’s Affordable Care Act” and said that his appointment is “drawing immediate criticism from Democrats.”

The Post story recalls Moffit’s previous assignment with the commission to review and approve a $543 million medical center in Prince George’s County, one of the largest hospital projects undertaken in Maryland.

Moffit secured commission approval of the project, but insisted on a $100 million reduction in overall costs to assure the hospital’s financial viability and to protect the taxpayers’ investment. Moffit also secured clarity from hospital officials on management improvements and the steps they would take to create strong primary care networks to serve the people of Prince George’s County.

“Dr. Moffit is one of the top health care experts in the nation,” says Jennifer Marshall, vice president for the Institute for Family, Community, and Opportunity, and the Joseph C. and Elizabeth A. Anderlik Fellow at The Heritage Foundation.

“His appointment as the chair of the Maryland Health Care Commission is a terrific opportunity for Marylanders to benefit from the patient-centered reform ideas that he brings to the table.”

Moffit served in the federal government during the Reagan administration as deputy assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and as an assistant director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. In 2010, Modern Healthcare magazine listed Moffit as one of the 100 most influential Americans in health care.