Office of the Secretary

I'm thrilled to share that I'll be joining the Washington State Department of Health as your new Secretary of Health on July 7th.

I was honored to serve as the Deputy Secretary for Health at DOH from 2014-2016, working alongside many amazing public health professionals across Washington. That experience – working with the incredible team at DOH, seeing the breadth and impact of our work, and being part of DOH's mission – has stayed with me throughout my career.

The journey back

Since leaving DOH in 2016, I've continued my public health journey right here in Washington – leading King County through the COVID response as Interim Director, and most recently transforming the Snohomish Health District into a full county health department. Each experience has reinforced what I learned during my time here: that Washington does public health differently. We lead with science and compassion. We innovate. We don't just serve communities – we partner with them.

Throughout these roles, I've stayed connected to the work happening at DOH through the Foundational Public Health Services Steering Committee, where I've been proud to help secure new investments that strengthen our entire public health system – investments that directly benefit the work you do every day.

I'm returning to DOH at a time when our work has never been more important or more visible. The challenges we face – from potential federal funding cuts to rebuilding public trust, from health equity to emergency preparedness, from rural health access to emerging threats – require the kind of collaborative, science-based leadership that DOH is known for. Having seen our public health system from local, regional, and state perspectives, I'm convinced that Washington is uniquely positioned to make it through whatever comes our way. I'm looking forward to working with staff and partners to strengthen public health for every community across our state.