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.

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