The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has appointed Dr. Lawrence Greenblatt as the state’s new health director and chief medical officer.
He’ll take over that role on Monday, June 2.
He gets that job at a time when, post-pandemic, the entire country is seeing multiple political battles being fought in the health arena.
Dr. Greenblatt, a physician, professor and long-standing public health advocate, brings a whole lot of experience to the job in terms of his medical education, clinical leadership and healthcare policy work. According to state health officials, he’s widely known in health circles for his commitment to delivering high-quality care to patients with complex medical and social needs – as well as for his leadership in expanding access to mental health and addiction services across the state.
“Dr. Greenblatt is an innovator and public health advocate with a long track record of increasing access to mental and physical health care in North Carolina,” said NC Health and Human Services Secretary Dev Sangvai this week. “He has the vision and experience needed to lead our state’s public health efforts as we work to create a healthier North Carolina for all.”
While he studied medicine at the University of California in San Diego and did his undergraduate work at Northwestern University, he has very strong ties to the school that’s disliked a great deal by most people studying in Chapel Hill.
Over the last three decades, Dr. Greenblatt has worked as a general internist, educator and policy maker within the Duke University Health System. He’s been recognized for integrating behavioral health and addiction treatment into primary care settings.
Since 2008, he’s led Duke’s Medicaid Network—originally Northern Piedmont Community Care, a component of the statewide Community Care of North Carolina network. In 2021, under the state’s Medicaid transformation, Greenblatt became Medical Director of Duke’s Clinically Integrated Network, which currently serves 100,000 Medicaid enrollees and supports numerous practices.
“I am honored to be chosen for this important role in improving the health and well-being of the more than 11 million North Carolinians that call this great state home,” Dr. Greenblatt said in a prepared statement. “As a physician and educator, I know the value of making sure every person has access to mental and physical health care when they need it and in the setting that is most appropriate for them.”
Dr. Greenblatt has also played a leading role in addressing opioid use. In 2012, he helped launch one of the country’s first academic programs meant to promote safe opioid prescribing and expand treatment for opioid abuse.
Also on his resume is the fact that he has chaired the NC Medicaid Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee and served as Secretary of the NC Medicaid Physician Advisory Group.
In addition to his state-level leadership, he has contributed extensively to local mental health planning and he co-led the Durham Crisis Collaborative. That’s a regional initiative focused on improving crisis response and support for people with mental illness and substance use disorders.
