Editor’s note: Laura Krantz, Tom Brown and Cory Dawson contributed to this report.
Gov. Peter Shumlin on Tuesday ousted Agency of Human Services Secretary Doug Racine and replaced him with Health Commissioner Harry Chen.
Shumlin at an unrelated news conference in Rutland refused to directly answer reporters’ questions on whether Racine resigned or was fired.
“I felt that Doug Racine had done great things for the agency,” Shumlin said. “It was time for a leadership change and I made that change. I felt that it was time for a different kind of leadership.”
On Monday afternoon Racine was called to a meeting with Jeb Spaulding and Liz Miller, the secretary of administration and Shumlin’s chief of staff. “They told me the governor wanted to make a change, and I said, ‘What change was that?’ They said you.” Racine went back to his office, cleaned out his desk, took the pictures off the walls and went home.
The firing caught Racine by surprise. “I hate to admit it, it’s not a good thing to be fired,” he said. “At the same time that’s what happened, that’s the truth.” He says he had no inkling beforehand that Shumlin was unhappy with his work. The governor is a hands-off manager, Racine says, and “never said a word to me about it.”
Shumlin called his old political rival later on Monday and told him he wanted “a new style of leader for the agency,” Racine said. “Someone with an outward focus who could work with the media, focus groups and constituency groups.”
Although there had been some disagreements with the governor and a few “rough patches,” Racine says the agency was well managed under his leadership. “I feel good about the job I’ve done. I’m proud of it, and I’m sorry I can’t continue.”
The Agency of Human Services has about 4,000 employees and oversees six departments, two of which have been under fire this year. The agency has been criticized for the Department of Vermont Health Access’ troubled rollout of Vermont Health Connect and for its management of the Department for Children and Families, which has been roiled by three child deaths this year that were ruled homicides.
Racine said he was never given the responsibility of oversight for Vermont Health Connect — the troubled launch of the website was handled directly by the Fifth Floor.
The toddler deaths have rocked the agency. “We were responding,” Racine said, “but not responding fast enough.” Changes were made to the Department for Children and Families protocol for reunification of families with a history of abuse. Racine says the district offices don’t have enough depth of experience with extreme physical abuse; a central office employee now helps to evaluate cases.
Asked whether Racine’s replacement had anything to do with the problems at DCF, Shumlin said “Absolutely not.”
Racine sees it differently. “I get it, somebody has to be punished,” he said. “I guess they decided I was the one, but I don’t know why.”
Read VTDigger’s story about Racine’s tenure here.
Shumlin said at the news conference Tuesday that he did not immediately intend to replace Mark Larson, commissioner of the Department of Vermont Health Access, or David Yacovone, commissioner of DCF, but said Chen might reach a different conclusion.
“If there are ways that I feel … in terms of leadership changes that need to be made to address those challenges, that’s something I’m willing to do,” Chen said about any personnel changes.
In a news release earlier Tuesday, Shumlin praised Racine’s effort to create a results-based planning strategy that is based on data. In the aftermath of Tropical Storm Irene, Racine’s agency was displaced from the Waterbury State Office Complex and is still located in scattered rental spaces in central Vermont and Chittenden County.
Under Racine’s tenure, the state revamped the mental health system after Irene also damaged the Vermont State Hospital located on the campus of the office complex in Waterbury. Instead of centralizing care for patients with acute mental illness at one facility, the state opted to build a small replacement hospital in Berlin and created a decentralized system that is dispersed across geographic locations. Racine also developed a leadership program for young employees and asked front-line workers to propose ideas for improving program efficiencies.
“This has been a tough job, but now is the right time to start with new leadership to take the Agency of Human Services forward,” Shumlin said.
Racine says he believed the agency was making good progress on multiple fronts. His primary focus has been operational in nature. He laid out a strategic plan, created a unified IT system and tried to break down “silos” between the agency’s six departments in order to create a more seamless system for Vermonters who are in the human services system.
Sen. Kevin Mullin, R-Rutland, was surprised by Racine’s ouster. “I’m not convinced that he was the reason for some of the failures within the agency,” Mullin said.
Racine lost to Shumlin in the 2010 Democratic primary by 197 votes and was named secretary of AHS following Shumlin’s win in the general election.
When Shumlin took office he installed three of his four primary challengers in state government positions: Racine as AHS secretary; Deb Markowitz as secretary of the Agency of Natural Resources; and Susan Bartlett as a special assistant in the governor’s office.
Chen is expected to remain as interim secretary through the end of the year. Tracy Dolan, deputy health commissioner, will head that department in the meantime.
“With a strong AHS team to support him, Harry is the perfect choice to lead the changes needed to strengthen the Agency and its commitment to keep Vermonters healthy and safe,” Shumlin said in a statement.
Chen was an emergency physician at Rutland Regional Medical Center for more than 20 years and served as medical director at the hospital for several years before he became the commissioner of the Vermont Department of Health in January 2011.
Chen obtained his medical degree from the Oregon Health Sciences University School of Medicine where he served as chief resident.
He served as a representative in the Vermont House from 2002 to 2008.
