Heckler, Margaret Mary (1931-2018), was secretary of health and human services from 1983 to 1985. President Ronald Reagan named her to the position. She had served 16 years in the United States House of Representatives as a Republican from Massachusetts. In 1985, Reagan named her U.S. ambassador to Ireland. She held that post until 1989.
In Congress, Heckler supported women’s rights and the adoption of the proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In 1977, Heckler and Representative Elizabeth Holtzman, a Democrat from New York, founded a group that became known as the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues. As secretary of health and human services, Heckler introduced a system of set rates for Medicare payments to hospitals. She also helped win Congress’s approval of a law that helps ensure payment of court-ordered child support.
Margaret Mary O’Shaughnessy was born on June 21, 1931, in the Flushing section of New York City. She was married to John M. Heckler from 1953 to 1985. She died on Aug. 6, 2018.
