The goal of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene is to improve the health status of every Maryland resident and to ensure access to quality health care. The department is responsible for helping each person live a life free from the threat of communicable diseases, tainted foods and dangerous products. To assist in our mission, we regulate health care providers, facilities and organizations, and manage direct services to patients where appropriate.

The Client & Community Services Division has offices across the state that run programs locally such as the Senior Advocacy Program, which aims to curb elder abuse and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid.

The Maryland Health Insurance Plan is a state-managed health insurance program for Marylanders who have been unable to procure health insurance. CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield and CareFirst BlueChoice Inc. administer the plan, which is governed by a board of directors. For low- to middle-income senior citizens, the program has subsidies that reduce copayments under the Medicare Prescription Drug Plans (Part D).

The governor established this council in 2010 as a way of implementing historic health care reform in the state. The panel, which consists of lawmakers, insurance representatives and state health officials, is tasked with learning which programs are needed in the state and how to implement them.

Offered through the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, the Erickson School teaches undergraduate and graduate students about aging, management and policy.

Established in 1987, Public Health Services directs four administrations: Family Health; Infectious Disease and Environmental Health; Laboratories; and Vital Statistics. Public Health Services also oversees local health departments and is responsible for the Office of Chief Medical Examiner, the Office of Preparedness and Response, and the State Anatomy Board. Public Health Services is aided by the Health & Human Services Referral Board.

The Financial Review Committee was created in 1985 (Chapter 752, Acts of 1985). At the request of the Department of Aging, the committee evaluates the financial condition of providers of continuing care that are experiencing financial difficulty. The committee then recommends the action that the department should take. The committee's seven members are appointed to three-year terms by the secretary of aging (Code Human Services Article, Sections 10-463 through 10-469).

Initially, the Maryland Health & Human Services Referral Board was created to provide a single source of information and a referral phone number for health and human services statewide, beginning with four pilot programs. It was reorganized in October 2010. It oversees the 211 Maryland Call Centers and operates a statewide system. The board falls under the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and it is composed of 16 members.

The Commission on Aging advises the secretary of aging about the needs of the elderly in Maryland and the work of the Department of Aging. The commission originated as the State Coordinating Commission on the Problems of the Aging in 1959 (Chapter 1, Acts of 1959). It reformed under its present name in 1971 (Chapter 595, Acts of 1971). The commission is composed of 13 members. They are appointed to four-year terms by the governor, who names the chair (Code Human Services Article, Section 10-208).

The Maryland Insurance Administration is an independent state agency that regulates Maryland's insurance industry and protects consumers by ensuring that insurance companies and health plans act in accordance with insurance laws.

The Maryland Department of Aging administers local programs throughout the state as well as state and federal funds for senior citizen programs.

The Maryland Hospital Association is the advocate for Maryland’s hospitals, health systems, communities and patients before legislative and regulatory bodies. It is an independent organization that is allied with the American Hospital Association.

Partners in Care Maryland Inc. is a nonprofit organization based in Anne Arundel County that uses volunteers to provide a variety of services for older adults around the state, in order to help them remain independent in their own homes.

United Seniors of Maryland is a consortium of individuals and organizations geared toward the well-being of Maryland’s senior population. Member organizations include state and local governments, nonprofits, Area Agencies on Aging and other groups.

MedChi is a nonprofit organization that speaks on behalf of 22,000 licensed physicians in the state. It also aims to be an advocate for patients and public health.

AARP, formerly the American Association of Retired Persons, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization with a membership that advocates for people ages 50 and older. Since 1958, AARP has lobbied for senior issues, including the passage of Medicare in 1965. AARP offers support from staffed offices in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Delmarva Foundation is the Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for the state of Maryland. QIOs are private, mostly not-for-profit organizations, staffed by doctors and other health care professionals, who are trained to review medical care, to help beneficiaries with complaints about the quality of care and to implement improvements in the quality of care available throughout the spectrum of care. QIOs are required under Sections 1152-1154 of the Social Security Act.

The Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) program helps Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries avoid, detect and prevent health care fraud. The goal is to protect older people and to preserve the integrity of the Medicare and Medicaid programs. The federal program was created in 1996 by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and amended in 2006 by Titles II and IV of the Older Americans Act.

Long-term care ombudsmen are advocates for residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities. They resolve complaints and educate seniors and long-term care providers about their rights and good care practices. They also provide information to the public on nursing homes and other long-term care facilities and services, residents' rights, and legislative and policy issues. In 1978, an amendment to the federal Older Americans Act required every state to have an ombudsman program that addresses complaints and advocates for improvements in the long-term care system. The ombudsman program is administered by the Administration on Aging (AoA).

The Area Agencies on Aging (AAA) were established under the Older Americans Act (OAA) Comprehensive Services Amendments in 1973 to respond to the needs of Americans 60 and older in every local community. The amendments added a new Title V, which authorized grants to local community agencies in every state. The AAAs provide a range of options that allow older adults to choose the home- and community-based services and living arrangements that suit them best. Maryland has 19 Area Agencies on Aging, most broken down by county. Some counties are organized together, while Baltimore city and county have separate offices. Each office also has a local ombudsman.

The State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) is a national program that offers counseling and assistance to people with Medicare and to their families. Coordinators provide counseling on Medicare benefits, Medicare Prescription Drug Plans (Part D), Social Security, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. SHIP, formerly the Information, Counseling and Assistance (ICA) grants program, was created under section 4360 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990. This act authorized the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to make grants to states for health advisory services programs for people with Medicare.

Richard G. Bennett has served as a clinician, researcher and educator at Johns Hopkins in addition to serving as president of the Bayview Medical Center starting in 2006. He previously served as executive medical director of The Johns Hopkins Geriatrics Center and chief medical officer of Johns Hopkins Health Care. He is currently a member of the board of directors and the executive medical director at Keswick Multicare Center. He earned his medical degree from The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Steven S. Sharfstein has served as president and CEO of Sheppard Pratt Health System since 1992. His research interests include financing of psychiatric care and public psychiatric care, and the utilization and cost offsets of psychiatric treatment. He earned his M.P.A. from the John F. Kennedy School of Government and completed the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program.

Bradley S. Chambers has served as president since 2009. He joined MedStar Union Memorial Hospital in 1998 as vice president of operations and later served as senior vice president and chief operating officer. Prior to MedStar, Chambers worked for the University of Maryland Medical System. He earned his master's degree in health administration at Towson University.

Before he became president and CEO of the University of Maryland Medical System in 2008, Robert Chrencik served as the system’s chief financial officer and executive vice president. Earlier in his career, he was a senior manager in the health care consulting practice at KPMG, a global network of audit, advisory and tax service firms. He is a member of the executive committee of the Maryland Hospital Association and chairman of the association’s operations committee. He earned his MBA from Loyola University in Maryland.

Edward D. Miller became CEO of Johns Hopkins Medicine, dean of The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and vice president for medicine of The Johns Hopkins University in January 1997. Earlier in his career, he served as professor and chairman of the department of anesthesiology at Columbia University. He previously held the position of president of the Association of University Anesthesiologists and served on the board of the International Anesthesia Research Society. He received his medical degree from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry.

The Education, Health & Environmental Affairs Committee reviews legislation relating to: agriculture and land preservation; alcoholic beverages; licensing and regulation of businesses and labor, including business, health and related occupations and professions; education policy; elections; energy; environment; ethics; fire prevention; local government; natural resources; procurement; state government organizations, procedures and administrative law; and veterans affairs. Eleven senators serve on this committee.

This committee was created in January 2003; committee members consider legislation relating to child and elder health care, health and life insurance, and health policy and planning. The committee is composed of 25 members.