HHSS reorganization goes into effect
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By NANCY HICKS / Lincoln Journal Star
A reorganization that creates a single Department of Health and Human Services and affects about half of Nebraska state employees becomes official Sunday.
The new structure will make it easier for Nebraskans to understand where to call about services. And the new leaders will create systemic and cultural changes, said Gov. Dave Heineman.
The new Department of Health and Human Services will have six divisions, with names that match the kinds of services provided, Heineman said.
CEO, Department of Health and Human Services
A former state senator, Peterson was appointed as policy secretary of the Health and Human Services System by former Gov. Mike Johanns in 1999.
She has a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, taught in the Grand Island public schools and was executive director of the Hall County Leadership Tomorrow.
Salary: $123,600
Operations
547 employees
* Provides support services for other divisions, including human resources, communications, financial services, legal services, and technology.
***
Scot Adams
Adams was former executive director of Catholic Charities, from 1994 until his appointment by Heineman in March.
He has 31 years of professional experience in social work, starting as a chemical dependency counselor.
Adams has a doctor of philosophy in community and human resources from University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Salary: $113,300
Division of Behavioral Health
993 employees
* Operates the state’s two psychiatric hospitals, the Lincoln and Norfolk regional centers and adolescent treatment programs in Hastings.
* Oversees community-based services for people with addiction, gambling problems and mental illness.
***
Todd Landry
Currently the president and CEO of Omaha’s Child Saving Institute, Landry will take over the division at the end of July.
Landry, who has a masters of business administration from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, worked 13 years for Conoco Inc. before moving to the non-profit social services sector.
Salary: $130,000
Division of Children and Family Services
2,392 employees
* Operates programs for children who are wards of the state and the youth rehabilitation treatment centers in Geneva and Kearney.
* Runs the child support enforcement system, determines Medicaid eligibility, and operates the child care subsidy program, the Aid to Dependent Children program, refugee resettlement, energy assistance and food stamp programs.
***
Director unnamed
Division of Developmental Disabilities
913 employees
* The division operates the Beatrice State Developmental Center and contracts with private agencies for community-based services, including group homes and sheltered workshops, for people with developmental disabilities.
***
Vivianne Chaumont
Chaumont was an assistant attorney general in the Colorado Attorney General’s office where she was chief counsel for the state’s Medicaid program and other public assistance and public health programs.
Most recently she was CEO of ValueOptions of AZ Inc., a company with contracts to manage the delivery of services to Medicaid clients in Arizona.
She has a law degree from the University of California-Davis.
Salary: $118,450
Division of Medicaid and Long-Term Care
156 employees
* Makes Medicaid payments to hospitals, nursing homes and health care professionals.
* Operates adult protective services, works with local aging agencies.
***
Dr. Joann Schaefer
Schaefer was an associate professor at Creighton University Medical School in the Department of Family Medicine.
She served as deputy chief medical officer for the state for three years before being appointed Chief Medical Officer in 2005.
She received her medical degree from Creighton University.
Salary: $134,849
Division of Public Health
477 employees
* Licenses, regulates and investigates complaints related to health care professionals and nursing homes, and monitors environmental health regulations for water and air.
* Responsible for public health and health promotion programs, infectious disease surveillance, bioterrorism and data systems for specific diseases.
***
John Hilgert
Hilgert holds dual roles as director of the Department of Veterans Affairs and director of the Division of Veterans’ Homes.
Hilgert was on active duty with the U.S. Army and served in Desert Storm. He has a degree in business administration from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and is a former state senator.
Salary: $105,575
Division of Veterans’ Homes
800 employees
* Operates the four state veterans’ homes in Bellevue, Norfolk, Grand Island and Scottsbluff.
The change should make the agency more customer friendly. For example if a person has a problem with veterans’ home, he or she will know where to call, he said.
Heineman has appointed five of the six new division directors and the chief executive officer for the department. He hopes to name a director for the Division of Developmental Disabilities by the fall.
CEO Chris Peterson and two of her division directors come from within state government. The other three directors have been involved with private agencies.
This mix of new people plus some experienced leaders from within the department is intentional, the governor said, a blending of those who understand the system and the role of a public agency — with new eyes and new ideas from the outside.
Heineman said he felt he needed an insider for the chief executive officer, someone who understood the system, the Legislature and the relationship the agency has with the public.
But he wanted an outsider for the Division on Children and Families because of criticism of the state’s foster care system.
“I wanted someone from outside the system, but someone who knew the system and the players and who was respected, to come in with a new set of eyes. “
Heineman said he wants answers to two key foster care questions:
* Why are so many children getting into the system?
* Once in the system, why are they moving around so much?
This reorganization is the second step in a process that began a decade ago when the state merged parts of five agencies into the Health and Human Services System, with three separate units and a five-member governing group.
Creating a single agency was not politically possible during that initial merger, former state Sen. Don Wesely said during discussion of the reorganization last year.
Reach Nancy Hicks at 473-7250 or nhicks@journalstar.com
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Dave wrote on July 1, 2007 4:13 pm:
Interestingly enough ... wrote on July 1, 2007 4:33 pm:
SRO wrote on July 1, 2007 4:34 pm:
HHSS is a joke! wrote on July 9, 2007 10:21 am: