HHS leader promises openness

LINCOLN — The Omaha attorney named as the new chief executive officer of Nebraska’s Department of Health and Human Services promised Monday to promote openness and responsibility within the agency.

At the same time, Kerry Winterer said, he wants to highlight the good work done by the state’s largest department.

“The fact that (HHS) is large and provides important and many times life-sustaining services to citizens of the state is invigorating,” he said. “The department’s mission provides all the more motivation to find ways to effectively provide those services and really make a difference in the lives of so many people.”

Gov. Dave Heineman announced that Winterer will begin July 13, more than six months after the Jan. 2 retirement of Chris Peterson, the agency’s first CEO.

Some state lawmakers and advocates had called the extended vacancy troubling, given the issues faced by the agency.

Among them are care problems at a state institution for the developmentally disabled, proposals to privatize child welfare services and gaps in services to troubled children — highlighted by the number of parents who used the state’s safe haven law last year before age limitations were added.

The governor said he took time to find the right person, one who understands Nebraska and the Legislature and has the skills to move the agency forward.

Heineman said Winterer, a State Board of Education member, businessman and former Republican Party leader, fits the bill.

“Kerry has the business knowledge that will be an asset in leading a successful department,” Heineman said. “He is an effective communicator, he understands the value of public-private partnerships, and he will be a good leader.”

Winterer, 59, has health care experience as co-founder of the Benefit Group, which administers health insurance and other plans for small employers. The company has about 50 employees. Winterer was the company’s vice president and general counsel until 2007, when he sold his share and founded a consulting firm, Moran Resources.

In his new job, Winterer will head an agency with an annual budget of $2.9 billion — about one-third of the state’s overall budget — and more than 5,500 full-time equivalent employees, or about one-third of all state workers. The agency receives state, federal and other funding.

Winterer will oversee the six HHS divisions — behavioral health; children and family services; developmental disabilities; Medicaid and long-term care; public health; and veterans homes — and operations that serve the whole agency.

Reaction to the appointment ranged from noncommittal to positive.

State Sen. John Nelson of Omaha, an attorney, said he has met Winterer and found him to be well-organized and very professional. He praised Winterer’s background and experience.

“The more I think about it, I think it’s probably an excellent appointment,” Nelson said.

State Sen. Mike Gloor of Grand Island, a former hospital administrator, said he didn’t know Winterer but was glad that the governor had filled the position.

“The department is too important and too large to go much longer without a CEO,” Gloor said.

Kathy Hoell, executive director of the Statewide Independent Living Council, said she was encouraged by Winterer’s promise to work with advocacy groups. But she said time will tell how well that turns out.

Winterer’s public service experience consists of two years on the State Board of Education. He was appointed in 2007 and elected in 2008. He will resign from the board, and Heineman will appoint a successor.

Winterer was unsuccessful in two attempts at seeking public office: running for the Legislature in 2006 and applying to be secretary of state in 2000.

He is a former national committeeman for the Nebraska Republican Party and a former Douglas County Republican Party chairman.

Winterer has served a number of community organizations, including 20 years work with the Heartland Family Service. He also has served on the boards of the United Way of the Midlands, the Boy Scouts of America and the Greater Omaha Convention and Visitors Bureau.

He holds a law degree from Columbia University in New York, and he received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1972. Born in Scottsbluff, he graduated from Gering High School.

Contact the writer:

402-473-9583, martha.stoddard@owh.com