Connecticut Public Health Commissioner Ousted

CONNECTICUT — Gov. Ned Lamont on Tuesday announced that Public Health Commissioner Renee Coleman-Mitchell will be replaced by current Department of Social Services Commissioner Deidre Gifford. Gifford will run the department in an acting capacity until a national search for a replacement is completed.

Coleman-Mitchell released a statement Tuesday afternoon thanking Lamont for the opportunity to lead the department.

"I was informed by the Governor's staff that the decision to move the Department of Public Health in a different direction was not related to job performance," she said. "I take them at their word."

Lamont's Chief of Staff Paul Mounds said Tuesday that the administration decided to go, "in a different direction," for the commissioner position.

"Every commissioner works at the pleasure of the governor and the governor and this administration has decided to go in a different direction, we wish her all the best,” Mounds said.

"I appreciate Commissioner Coleman-Mitchell’s willingness to join my administration and lead one of our most vital state agencies, which is responsible for overseeing so many critical public health needs," Lamont said in a statement. "Her service over the last year has been a great deal of help, particularly in the face of the global COVID-19 pandemic that has brought disruption to many throughout the world."

Coleman-Mitchell has largely been absent from public view since the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. She last appeared with the governor in early April. Since then, state COO Josh Geballe has been the de-facto leader of the department, according to the Hartford Courant.

Lamont didn't say in the press release the nature of Coleman-Mitchell's departure, but the Connecticut Mirror reports that she didn't voluntarily leave.

State Epidemiologist Dr. Matthew Cartter has been the public health representative for the most part at news conferences.

The Courant's Dave Altimari reported that DPH deputy commissioner Susan Roman abruptly resigned March 6 and alleged that she was racially discriminated against and called "the great white hope" within the department. She said working with Coleman-Mitchell was "an incredible disappointment." Roman was in charge of the department's coronavirus response until her resignation.

Gifford served as deputy director for Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. She oversaw Medicaid functions at the federal agency. Prior to that she was the medicaid director in the Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services. She holds a master’s degree in public health degree in epidemiology from UCLA.

"The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has required every state agency to even more closely align with each other and sync our operations to deliver a coordinated response for the people of Connecticut," Gifford said. "I am determined to continue these efforts for the duration of our emergency response and beyond."