President Obama officially nominated Kathleen Sebelius, the democratic governor of Kansas, for the job of Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services on Monday.  Sebelius had been considered the front-runner after former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle bowed out after questions arose about personal tax issues.

Daschle originally had been nominated to become HHS secretary and the White House health czar, which would have given him unprecedented control over healthcare policy reform and implementation. Obama, however, has since decided to distribute the duties between two people.

Obama’s new choice to fill the role of White House health czar is former Clinton administration healthcare official Nancy-Ann DeParle. A former administrator of what is now CMS, DeParle also formerly served as the Tennessee commissioner of human services and as a healthcare advisor at HHS. Both Sebelius and DeParle still face confirmation hearings before they can officially assume the new roles.