Governor Mike Dunleavy on the first day of session on January 18, 2022, introduced an executive order that would divide the Department of Health and Social Services into two departments. The FY23 budget proposal details how the different programs and the DHSS staff would be divided. On March 19th, the executive order became law, and will go into effect July 1st. The reorganization of the DHSS will create two smaller departments focused on a more productive approach to serving Alaskans, according to DHSS Commissioner Adam Crum.
Executive Order 121 divides the DHSS into two departments:
- The Department of Health – includes the Division of Public Health, Division of Public Assistance, Division of Behavioral Health, Division of Health Care Services, and the Division of Senior and Disabilities Services.
- The Department of Family and Community Services – includes the Division of Juvenile Justice, Alaska Psychiatric Institute, Alaska Pioneer Homes, and the Office of Children’s Services.
One of the reasons for the split is due to the Department of Health and Social Services’ budget being bigger than 12 other state departments, the legislature, court system, and Governor’s office combined.
Commissioner Crum also said:
“This is something that has long needed to be done because of the many lines of authority and the breadth of services we serve across the board for all Alaskans, it’s been a needed thing. That’s why my predecessors have discussed this and its always just kind of come up when’s a good time to do this? Even with the coronavirus pandemic, one of the things we did see was the fact that while this required a lot of time and attention on my staff and commissioner’s part in order to do this, the rest of the work of the department needed to continue. It just got to the point, we are able to do and adapt and find these changes. A lot of rule changes and system changes happen from federal authorities throughout the response to the pandemic. This just showed that no matter what, the time, the staff, and the department are able to adapt and adjust to this. We are setting ourselves up for the future to make sure that we can actually better serve Alaskans.”
Senate President Peter Micciche:
“I’m here today to primarily congratulate the apolitical subject matter experts at the Department of Health and Social Services for a job very well done. I’ve studied the decisions made on where the various divisions will reside, and the logic of the structure and I support the executive order, however I want to be clear; this is not a political decision.
This was a decision specifically designed to improve services to the most vulnerable Alaskans to identify cost reductions and efficiencies of the second leadership team to provide both the bandwidth to deliver a better result. Good government starts with good management. The management structure for a department with a $3 billion budget clearly needed improvement.
This move is largely based on a blend of public sector institutional knowledge and private sector principals of efficiency. The stakes are too high to ignore without changes. Think about it, nearly one in four Alaskans are on Medicaid, the largest part of our state budget. We need comprehensive solutions that manage these costs while bringing quality healthcare to Alaskans in need. My most common call is about OCS issues, a service too important to leave as a second thought. They’ve had 40% staff turnover for a year and nearly 60% of the affected children are Alaska Natives, which points to a duty to fixing what is happening with these children. A new commissioner will the job to focus on OCS improvements that will deliver better results.
Separating these important topics of child welfare, psychiatric treatment, disability services, healthcare costs, and public health will force us to have the conversation we should have had a decade ago. Most senators support the executive order for two reasons. First the department must be divided for the reasons stated above. Secondly, 60 legislators would likely have taken a very, very long time to agree on what experts have agreed upon and delivered efficiently through the EO process.
Bottom line is this, reorganization will make the lives of Alaskans better, especially for those most vulnerable and some experience the worst times in their lives. This is an important step forward in the journey. For these and other reasons, I strongly support the Division of the Department and the addition of the second leadership team to focus on the gaps in service to Alaskans. As well as the streamlining and savings to the department, it by far has the largest spending impact on our general fund.
I want to thank you Governor Dunleavy and for choosing what I view is an effective path and, again, congratulations to an apolitical DHSS team, the EO simply starts a necessary process, and the legislature will be standing by to assist through an active role for statutory adjustments as we move together in this process.”
Click here for more information on the DHSS reorganization.
