The head of the state’s largest agency can drop the “interim” from her title.
The Executive Council voted this week to confirm Lori Weaver of Concord as commissioner of the Department of Health and Human Services. She has served as acting commissioner since late last year, when Commissioner Lori Shibinette stepped down.
Weaver says she’s made progress on one of her top priorities: making a dent in the agency’s staff shortages.
Weaver will also continue to oversee efforts to expand the state’s mental health system. In May, a judge ordered the state to eliminate waitlists for emergency psychiatric beds within one year, a faster timeline than the state initially wanted. State officials and a group of hospitals agreed last month to resolve litigation over the issue of “ER boarding.”
New Hampshire is doing all it can to expand mental health capacity, Weaver said.
“Will it solve it by May of ‘24? I can’t tell you it’s going to be 100% solved. I can’t make that promise," she said. "But I can make the commitment that the department is going to work towards that end, and make inroads.”
Weaver will also oversee the department’s plans to replace its youth detention center and open a new forensic psychiatric hospital in the coming years.
Weaver has worked for the Department of Health and Human Services for over 20 years. As commissioner, her salary is $161,791.
NHPR's Dan Tuohy contributed to this report.
