Washington Secretary of Health Umair Shah said Tuesday he will step down next month, joining other state agency leaders planning to exit before Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson takes office.
“As you can imagine, making this decision was not easy and came after much soul-searching and numerous discussions with my family,” Shah said in an email to employees of the Department of Health. “While there is important work left to be done, this decision allows me to spend time with family while exploring what is next on my horizon.”
Shah is one of six members of Gov. Jay Inslee’s executive cabinet intending to leave on or around Jan. 15 when Ferguson, who is now attorney general, will begin his term as Washington’s 23rd governor.
Both Inslee and Ferguson are Democrats. But even when partisan control of the governor’s office does not change hands, shakeups in the executive ranks aren’t unusual.
The other departing agency executives are Jilma Meneses, secretary of the Department of Social and Health Services; Sue Birch, director of the Health Care Authority; Cheryl Strange, secretary of the Department of Corrections; Ross Hunter, secretary of the Department of Children, Youth and Families; and Laura Watson, secretary of the Department of Ecology.
Watson will join Attorney General-elect Nick Brown as his chief deputy attorney general. Strange, who announced months ago she would retire in February, was recently appointed to the National Institute of Corrections Advisory Board by U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland.
In addition, Craig Bill, director of the Governor’s Office of Indian Affairs, a small cabinet agency, is leaving. And Dave Danner, chair of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, will need a successor as his term ends Dec. 3. The commission is part of Inslee’s executive cabinet but Danner, who has clashed with Inlsee, does not participate in cabinet meetings.
Ferguson is expected Thursday to name members of Inslee’s administration as some of his first appointments. He previously named his eight-person executive leadership team.
