United States Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services



The Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services is the chief operating officer of the largest department in the United States government. The Deputy Secretary oversees all operations within the Department, including oversees Medicare, Medicaid, public health, medical research, food and drug safety, welfare, child and family services, disease prevention, Indian health, and mental health services. The incumbent Deputy Secretary is Tevi Troy.

The Deputy Secretary is also the Regulatory Policy Officer for the Department, overseeing the development and approval of all HHS regulations and significant guidance. In addition, the Deputy Secretary leads a number of initiatives at the Department, including implementing the President's Management Agenda, combating bio-terrorism, and public health emergency preparedness. He also represents Secretary Michael Leavitt on the board of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

The Deputy Secretary is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. The Deputy Secretary is paid at level II of the Executive Schedule, meaning he or she receives a basic annual salary of $162,000. The Deputy Secretary is assisted by a Principal Associate Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services, two Associate Deputy Secretaries, and three Staff Assistants. The position of Deputy Secretary was originally held by an Under Secretary until the position was retitled in August 1990. The position of Under Secretary had been in existence since the creation of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare in 1953.

Former Deputy Secretaries of Health and Human Services, in chronological order, are Kevin Thurm, Claude A. Allen, Alex M. Azar II, and Acting Deputy Secretary Eric Hargan.