The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration  announced that Zionsville resident Jay Chaudhary, J.D., will serve as the next director of the Indiana Division of Mental Health and Addiction. Chaudhary (pronounced CHAW-dree) begins in his new role on September 9. He replaces Kevin Moore, who retired in April after 35 years of state service. FSSA also announced Rachel Halleck will serve as DMHA deputy director and the division’s chief of staff.

“We are excited to welcome Jay and Rachel to continue the build on the momentum of DMHA in serving Hoosiers in a more comprehensive and evidence-based manner,” said FSSA Secretary Jennifer Walthall, M.D., M.P.H. “Jay is a committed patient advocate and expert on innovative system design in mental health and addiction. His willingness to serve as DMHA director couldn’t have come at a better time as Indiana focuses on integrated care and improved health outcomes.”

Chaudhary is currently the managing attorney for Indiana Legal Services where he’s served in several key positions including Midtown Medical Legal Partnership’s founding director. In his current role, Chaudhary focuses on improving health outcomes by addressing the individual and systemic legal needs of Hoosiers with mental health and substance use disorder. He is a graduate of Ball State University and the Indiana University Maurer School of Law.

Halleck, who lives in Indianapolis, is a licensed mental health counselor and a licensed addiction counselor who most recently served as the senior director of behavioral health strategy and innovation for Volunteers of America Ohio and Indiana. She completed her undergraduate education at Hanover College where she was the Distinguished Psychology Student of the Year. Halleck earned a master’s degree in clinical psychology from the University of Indianapolis.

“After a comprehensive and competitive national search, we couldn’t be more pleased that we found such a dynamic leadership duo right in our own backyard,” added Secretary Walthall. “Jay and Rachel both possess the invaluable combination of great talent and the desire to serve others. I have no doubt they will deliver on Governor Holcomb’s direction to attack the drug epidemic through prevention, treatment and enforcement.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) joined the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and federal partners, in close coordination with experts across governmental agencies, academia and non-governmental organizations, to announce the agency’s participation in the National Mitigation Investment Strategy (NMIS).

The NMIS provides a national, whole-community approach to investments in mitigation activities and risk management across federal, state, local, and tribal and territorial government and the private and non-profit sectors.

“Investing in mitigation efforts will enable EPA to better protect human health and the environment in the face of natural disasters,” said EPA’s Acting Associate Administrator of the Office of Homeland Security Ted Stanich. “Together our collective efforts will continue to build resilience across the nation.”

The investment strategy’s overarching goal is to improve the coordination and effectiveness of “mitigation investments,” defined as risk management actions taken to avoid, reduce, or transfer risks from natural hazards, including severe weather.

Below are recent examples of EPA’s continued dedication and investment in mitigation strategies across the country.

• Regional Resilience Technical Assistance – After helping three California regions take large-scale action for disaster resilience, EPA and FEMA partnered with the Metropolitan Transportation Commission/Association of Bay Area Governments to create a toolkit that helps regions plan for disasters by working across multiple jurisdictions and with non-governmental partners. The Regional Resilience Toolkit provides a step-by-step process to help decision makers engage with partners and stakeholders, conduct vulnerability assessments, identify and prioritize strategies, fund projects, and evaluate results.
• Integrating Water Quality and Nature-Based Approaches into Hazard Mitigation Plans – EPA’s Office of Water and Office of Community Revitalization are partnering with FEMA to help states and communities integrate hazard mitigation plans and water quality plans. Project locations include: Commonwealth of Massachusetts; Albany, New York; Huntington, West Virginia; Ashland, Oregon; State of Kentucky; Lower Meramec Valley, Missouri; Denton, Texas; Phoenix/Maricopa County, Arizona; and Mystic River in Massachusetts. Results, to date, demonstrate the benefits of using green infrastructure for multiple community goals including hazard mitigation, water quality, and floodplain management. Several of the communities are already seeing reduced flood insurance rates based on adoption of stormwater policies that reduce risk.
• Building Flood Resilience in Vermont – In 2011, Tropical Storm Irene caused significant flood damage to historic structures, homes and businesses in Vermont’s Mad River Valley. In 2012 at Vermont’s request, EPA partnered with FEMA to identify state and local policy options to increase community flood resilience. The state adopted several of the strategies that emerged from the workshop. The project developed a Flood Resilience Checklist that communities can use to assess their preparedness for future flooding events. The state provided this checklist to several other Vermont communities through a follow up project, the Vermont Economic Resiliency Initiative, and the checklist is the basis for the Flood Resilience for Riverine and Coastal Communities tool offered by EPA’s Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities Program.

Recommendations proposed in the NMIS will reduce loss of life and injuries, damage to property, and negative impacts to the economy and the environment and will lead the whole community in building a more resilient future.

Death List 8-12-19 TO 8-16-19