May 24 – Gov. Janet Mills appointed a longtime deputy to replace the retiring commissioner of the Department of Health and Human Services Jeanne Lambrew.
Sara Gagné-Holmes, who served as Lambrew’s deputy commissioner for the past five years, will serve as acting commissioner of the state’s largest department starting June 1.
“Deputy Commissioner Gagné-Holmes brings a wealth of experience and knowledge, as well as the respect of her colleagues, to the position of acting commissioner,” Mills said in a prepared statement Friday. “Having served as Deputy Commissioner for more than five years, she deeply understands the department’s operations and will ensure it remains in capable hands as I continue to consider candidates to succeed Commissioner Lambrew and continue the important work of advancing to continue healthcare and health care. well-being of the people of Maine.”
Gagné-Holmes, a native of Sanford and a graduate of Bowdoin College and the University of Maine School of Law, has a long history in healthcare, first as an attorney and later in the public sector. She served as a health policy and legal advisor to former Governor John Baldacci before transitioning to the nonprofit world. Since March 2019, she has served as deputy commissioner of DHHS.
“I am honored to step into the role of acting commissioner to advance the department’s mission to ensure the health, safety, resilience and opportunity for the people of Maine,” she said in a prepared statement. “I look forward to the opportunity to build on Commissioner Lambrew’s transformative leadership at the department and advance our critical work during this transition.”
Lambrew announced this month that she is stepping down as commissioner to take a teaching job at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health and a job as director of health care reform for The Century Foundation, a Washington, D.C. established organization. Lambrew had served in Mills’ cabinet since the start of her first term, overseeing the state’s pandemic response.
According to a news release from Mills’ office, the governor is still considering permanent candidates to lead DHHS. She will name a nominee in the coming weeks, and that person will then be subject to hearings before the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee, as well as confirmation by the Senate.
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