Dr. Lawrence Greenblatt will start work on June 2.
RALEIGH, N.C. — A new state health director has been named for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, someone the department said has pioneered work to improve mental health and addiction services in the Tar Heel State.
The department announced Wednesday that Dr. Lawrence Greenblatt was named to the role as state health director and chief medical officer, and he will start on Monday, June 2. NC DHHS said Greenblatt is a physician, professor, and champion for public health services.
“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. “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.”
The announcement from NC DHHS said Greenblatt served for three decades as a general internist, educator and Medicaid policy leader with the Duke University Health System, earning recognition for his work to integrate behavioral health and addiction services into primary care. He has led Duke’s Medicaid Network since 2008, first at Northern Piedmont Community Care, which was part of the statewide Community Care of North Carolina network. He continued as Medical Director of Duke’s Clinically Integrated Network under Medicaid transformation in 2021. The network serves 100,000 Medicaid enrollees and supports several 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,” said Dr. Greenblatt. “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.”
NC DHHS said that in 2012, Greenblatt launched one of the nation’s first academic initiatives to promote safe opioid prescribing and expand treatment for opioid use disorder. He also served as Chair of the NC Medicaid Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee and Secretary of the NC Medicaid Physician Advisory Group. He also co-led the Durham Crisis Collaborative and actively contributed to local substance use and mental health planning efforts.
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