Washington  - The US Senate began the first of a series of confirmation hearings on Thursday for president-elect Barack Obama's cabinet nominees.

The Senate committee for healthcare took up former senator Tom Daschle's nomination to become secretary of the Health and Human Services Department.

Obama has pledged to broadly reform healthcare and to extend coverage to Americans who cannot afford or currently do not have a medical insurance plan.

Daschle told the senators that the US government needs to spend more money on health care for average American families, noting that there are 46 million citizens without healthcare plans, up from 37 million in 1994.

"The flaws in our health system are pervasive and corrosive," Daschle said. "They threaten our health and economic security."

No date has been set for a full Senate vote for Daschle and the other nominees. Senator Hillary Clinton, nominated to become secretary of state, is set to appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday.

Daschle, of South Dakota, served as Senate majority leader before he lost his seat in the November 2004 election. (dpa)