The director of the Division of Health Care Services is out, according to a statement from the Department of Health and Social Services.

Margaret Brodie is no longer the director of the division, DHSS spokesperson Clinton Bennett said Thursday.

“We cannot provide any more details about her departure because it is a personnel matter,” Bennett said via email. “Renee Gayhart has been appointed acting director of the Division of Health Care Services.”

The Division of Health Care Services, according to its website, aims to “provide to all eligible Alaskans access and oversight to the full range of appropriate Medicaid services” and “protect Alaska’s most vulnerable populations through our certification and licensing sections.”

[Curious how budget proposal affects you? There’s a website for that]

Brodie has been the director of the division since 2012, according to an online biography from the Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home Association. She began her time with the state with the Division of Public Assistance, holding multiple positions from 1990-2001. She has also worked with the departments of Education and Early Development and Natural Resources.

She joined the Division of Health Care Services in 2008. She is a U.S. Air Force veteran and is a certified government financial manager. Her salary is just shy of $123,000, according to a public records request in November for state employee information.

Gayhart, now the acting director of the division, is currently the Tribal Health program manager for DHSS, according to the DHSS website. She worked for the state’s Department of Administration, the Office of Public Advocacy prior to joining DHSS in 1998.

Brodie’s departure comes days after another high-ranking state official indicated his intent to resign. On Tuesday, Public Defender Agency Director Quinlan Steiner submitted a statement to the governor that he intends to resign as soon as the Alaska Judicial Council finds a replacement for him.

---

• Contact reporter Alex McCarthy at amccarthy@juneauempire.com. Follow him on Twitter at @akmccarthy.

---