Shapiro announces his cabinet picks for key health and human services positions [The Philadelphia Inquirer]

Jan. 11—Gov.-elect Josh Shapiro has named Valerie Arkoosh, an anesthesiologist and chair of the Montgomery County Commissioners, as his human services secretary.

Arkoosh led her county's response in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, which elevated her to the spotlight for calmly offering information while her county was in the epicenter of the virus' spread.

She is a longtime ally of Shapiro from his days as a Montgomery County commissioner. Arkoosh succeeded him at the helm of the county board in 2016.

"I am deeply honored to be able to continue this fight alongside my friend," Arkoosh said in the announcement.

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The announcement of her nomination came with four other cabinet picks related to public health:

1.

Secretary of Health: Debra Bogen, a pediatrician and the director of the Allegheny County Health Department.

2.

Secretary of Drugs and Alcohol: Latika Davis-Jones, senior director of behavioral health at Highmark Wholecare, a Medicaid managed care provider in Southwest Pennsylvania.

3.

Secretary of Aging: Jason Kavulich, Lackawanna County director of the Agency on Aging.

4.

Insurance Commissioner: Mike Humphreys, who has held the role on an interim basis since last spring.

"Every Pennsylvanian deserves access to quality, affordable health care and a social safety net that is there for them in times of need — I'm confident these five leaders will help us deliver that for communities all across our Commonwealth," Shapiro said in the announcement.

Arkoosh is the latest person from the Philadelphia area named to a key position in the Shapiro administration. Others include former Philadelphia Deputy Mayor Rich Negrin, nominated to lead the Department of Environmental Protection, and Lower Merion School Superintendent Khalid Mumin, nominated as education secretary.

As human services secretary, Arkoosh will oversee a large department with a sprawling portfolio that includes Pennsylvania's Medicaid program, child welfare services, and social programs such as food stamps. DHS also licenses assisted living and behavioral health treatment facilities.

Meg Snead is currently leading DHS as acting secretary. Outgoing Gov. Tom Wolf nominated her last spring after her predecessor, Teresa Miller, resigned.

From delivery rooms to public office

Originally from Omaha, Neb., Arkoosh came to Philadelphia to complete her residency in anesthesiology at Thomas Jefferson University. Her focus was in assisting with anesthesia in delivery rooms and C-sections. In 2007, Arkoosh earned a master's degree in public health from Johns Hopkins University.

She was the chair of the anesthesia department at Drexel University, a professor of anesthesia and obstetrics at the University of Pennsylvania, and has been involved in federal health-care reform advocacy.

Her relationship with Shapiro goes back more than a decade. In 2011, when Democrats won control of the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners for the first time in its history, Shapiro became the chair. He tapped Arkoosh for his transition team, and later she was appointed the chair of the county's Board of Health.

In 2014, she ran unsuccessfully for Congress. The following year she was appointed to the county commissioners board to fill a vacancy. She won reelection the same year, and in 2016, when Shapiro won his bid to the Attorney General's Office, she succeeded him as chair.

Arkoosh is the first woman to lead the county since it was founded in 1784.

She ran in the 2022 Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, centering her campaign on her credentials as a physician and her experience in public health. Her campaign slogan was "No B.S., just science."

She dropped out of the race three months before the primary.

Arkoosh will need to resign from the county board, and the courts will appoint a replacement who will hold the seat for the rest of her term.

The administration is scheduled to be sworn in on Jan. 17.

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