Over the past three months, the Department of Health and Social Services has completed a successful and smooth transition during the change of administrations. It is the hard work of all DHSS employees that has allowed our customers-both providers and clients-to experience no interruption in services.
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Mobilizing Alaskans' best thinking on DHSS
A new administration provides a good opportunity to rethink each Department and find ways to better serve Alaskans. Within DHSS, we received valuable input and creative ideas from the performance review audit, employee surveys and the thoughts of thousands of Alaskans during regional transition field hearings.
It is now our task to use this information to make prudent changes that benefit the Department, state government and most importantly, our beneficiaries.
While many of you have probably heard rumors about changes, I want to tell you personally that we have been working on a comprehensive realignment of program activities within DHSS.
As previously noted, a wide variety of individuals and organizations who know the Department and who are committed to serving Alaskans offered a wealth of input and ideas in the surveys and performance audits. I want to acknowledge and thank the many people who participated in this process - your input influenced a significant part of this reorganization.
Solid principles guide reorganization
I also want you to know the central reasons we are undertaking this now and articulate the principles we are following.
We are reorganizing to get our finances in order, so that we can restructure our Medicaid financing, maximize federal funding for our services, and ensure that we are investing public funds to get the best health and social services for Alaskans.
We are integrating the health and social services that we provide to Alaskans in ways that make sense, and in ways that serve our customers better and more efficiently.
And we are building into our organization a structure empowered to find ways we can continue delivering quality services in these times of financial concern.
Over the next few weeks more details of the restructuring will be finalized. As you know, all fifty states are grappling with budget deficits and the toughest financial challenges in decades, driven in nearly every state by increasing Medicaid costs. It is a goal of this administration to find ways to continue to deliver vital health and social services to Alaskans in a time of declining state revenues.
We see this challenge as an opportunity to rethink our ways of doing business, find new ways to finance this department's operations and ensure delivery of effective customer services. Alaska has unique resources and partnerships that other states do not have, and we intend to make them work to benefit Alaskans.
Change is never easy to accomplish, especially in an organization as large as DHSS. We realize that the reorganization will take some time and be challenging for everyone. However, I am convinced that we have many talented people with tremendous professional abilities and a strong commitment to the mission of DHSS. Working together, we can make this department better, stronger, and even more able to enhance the health and self-sufficiency of all Alaskans.
I am committed to keeping you apprised of our progress throughout this entire project, and look forward to reporting on the improvements we anticipate.
Jackson, Lombardo join DHSS
Please join me in welcoming Karleen Jackson as Deputy Commissioner, and Tony Lombardo as Director of Public Assistance. Tony began with DPA on Feb. 24. Karleen arrived in the Juneau Commissioner's office on Feb. 20, and will be responsible for DFYS, DPA, DJJ and DAS. Deputy Commissioner Bob Labbe will be responsible for DMA, DMHDD, DPH and ADA.
Our mission continues as our top priority
Even during this restructuring, the business and mission of this department will continue. In the past week an estimated 100 health care workers from the Alaska Div. of Public Health, the Municipality of Anchorage, Alaska Regional Hospital, the Alaska Veteran Affairs Healthcare System and Regional Office, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Arctic Investigations Program began voluntarily receiving smallpox vaccinations. These are members of Alaska's Public Health and Healthcare Response Teams who will respond and investigate in the event a case of smallpox is ever suspected in Alaska. I want to express the thanks of this Department and all Alaskans to the nurses and health care professionals who participated in this important project.
Sincerely,
Joel Gilbertson, Commissioner