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Susan Gerard was appointed Director of the Arizona Department of Health Services on April 29, 2005. As state Health Director, she oversees one of the largest departments in Arizona State Government, with a budget of more than $1 billion and a workforce of more than 1,800 employees. The Arizona Department of Health Services is the state’s lead public health agency, responsible for protecting, maintaining and improving the health of all Arizonans. The department operates programs in behavioral health, disease prevention and control, health promotion, community public health, environmental health, maternal and child health, emergency preparedness, and regulation of child care and assisted living centers, nursing homes, hospitals, and other health care providers.
Susan previously served as a member of Governor Janet Napolitano’ s administration as a policy adviser for health care issues, assisting with crucial decisions involving state and federal budgets of nearly $8.1 billion directly linked to services for more than 1.2 million residents.
Susan has given years of her time to the benefit of Arizona. Susan served in the state Legislature from 1988 to 2002, chairing the health committee for 10 years and earning recognition as a statewide leader on health care issues. She received awards for her leadership, and honors from all the major health organizations in Arizona, including the Arizona Hospital Association, Arizona Medical Association and the Arizona Public Health Association.
During her legislative career, Susan directed the effort to create the Child Fatality Review Program to reduce preventable child deaths using a cross-disciplinary approach. She also led a yearlong study and implemented one of the country’s first advance health care directive programs. She led efforts to fund and create intervention and prevention programs such as Healthy Families, Healthy Start and Head Start. And she was instrumental in obtaining funding for the seriously mentally ill, the Arizona State Hospital and other mental health programs.
"She brings years of experience and understanding of complex health care issues--including disease prevention, Medicaid and Medicare, public health and behavioral health,” Governor Napolitano said in announcing Susan’s appointment. “I believe she can lead DHS in the right direction."
Susan has been a resident of Arizona for 32 years. She has been active in her community, having served on a variety of boards and service organizations, including:
- City of Phoenix AIDS Task Force, Chair
- National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy
- National Forum for State Health Policy Leadership
- Institute for Mental Health Research
- Supreme Court Juvenile Justice Committee
- Madison Education Foundation
- Long Term Care Task Force
Susan received a Bachelor of Arts from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, and a Masters in Business Administration from Arizona State University.
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