Maryland’s state health secretary, Dr. Laura Herrera Scott, is resigning her position at the end of this month, Gov. Wes Moore announced Thursday.

Moore praised Herrera Scott’s two-year tenure leading the Maryland Department of Health, saying in a statement that she “laid a strong foundation” at the department.

Herrera Scott will be replaced by Dr. Meena Seshamani, who most recently led the Medicare program for the federal government. If confirmed by the state Senate, Seshamani would start in April. In the interim, Deputy Secretary Ryan B. Moran will be acting secretary.

The Maryland Department of Health has faced multiple challenges during Herrera Scott’s tenure. It’s one of the largest departments in state government, with thousands of employees and a mission that includes running the Medicaid insurance program, operating state hospitals and promoting public health.

“There are so many different facets that fall under the secretary’s role, from health care financing to mental health to public health to hospital payments. That, in part, can be very draining. And it can also just be a lot to have to manage and oversee,” said Sen. Clarence Lam, a Howard County Democrat and medical doctor who chairs the committee that vets the governor’s cabinet appointments.

“It’s a very tough role for anyone to be in,” Lam said.

Lam said Herrera Scott worked hard to fill staffing vacancies in the health department and negotiated an agreement expected to lower health care costs and improve patient outcomes.

“Those were important initiatives to take on and see through,” Lam said. He declined to speculate on the reasons for her departure.

Multiple challenges during the past two years

Hererra Scott has faced several controversies during her tenure at the department, which had been depleted of staff by the previous administration.

The provision of psychiatric care for people in the criminal justice system, long a problem in Maryland, has continued to be a challenging spot under Herrera Scott.

At the state’s maximum-security psychiatric hospital, Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center, the CEO was removed last year after being accused of ongoing threatening behavior toward staff. A new head of the hospital was named last month.

Meanwhile, many defendants awaiting trial have languished in jails when they needed mental health care, leading judges to fine the health department for not complying with a law that requires detainees be sent to a hospital within 10 days of being declared unfit to stand trial.

Under Herrera Scott, the health department last fall put forward new rules for individuals with developmental disabilities who direct their own care and hire their own caretakers — changes that families said would be burdensome. Now those individuals, as well as others in programs for people with developmental disabilities, are facing $200 million worth of cuts in planned spending under Moore’s budget proposal.

The department also had an unworkable payment system for Medicaid service providers. A new firm brought in this year also has been fraught with problems, leaving addiction and providers unpaid and underpaid.

Herrera Scott is the second of Moore’s cabinet secretaries to leave their position, following former Commerce Secretary Kevin Anderson, who moved to an advisory role in state government. Moore has nominated Harry Coker, who was national cyber director under former President Joe Biden, to be the next commerce secretary.

Herrera Scott’s departure was first reported by Maryland Matters.

Baltimore Banner reporter Meredith Cohn contributed to this report.