Gov. Justice signs bill splitting up West Virginia health agency
Fox News
Gov. Jim Justice has signed a bill that will split up West Virginia's health agency into three new departments. Starting next January the shared departments will have over 400 employees.
The agency has faced repeated allegations of abuse and mistreatment of the state’s most vulnerable residents in its care. The department, the state's largest, runs West Virginia’s foster care system, state-run psychiatric facilities and a host of other offices and programs.
Lawmakers have said the department's current setup is too large to manage in a crisis and that separating the department will increase transparency in the budget process. The DHHR’s $7.6 billion budget currently accounts for about 40% of annual state spending.
The three departments will still maintain an office of shared services containing more than 400 employees responsible for compiling quarterly reports on the efficiency of the new agencies.