Nancy Navaretta to lead CT health services agency
Gov. Ned Lamont on Wednesday announced he is nominating Acting Commissioner Nancy Navarretta, of the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, to permanently lead the agency.
Navarretta previously served as the agency’s deputy commissioner under Miriam Delphin-Rittmon. DelphinRittmon left in June to serve in the Biden administration as assistant secretary for mental health and substance use at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
In a statement, Lamont said Navarretta, a Hamden resident, has dedicated her career to delivering behavioral health, and called her highly regarded among her peers.
“We need strong leadership on these issues at this time, particularly when it comes to the impact that the opioid epidemic is having on our country and the growing mental health needs resulting from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Lamont said. “This is an important responsibility, and I appreciate Nancy for agreeing to help lead Connecticut’s efforts on this front.”
Navarretta joined the agency in 2013, according to the governor’s office, first as director of behavioral health services, before moving to the role of deputy commissioner two years later. Prior to joining DMHAS, she ran a nonprofit behavioral health organization in Norwalk and served as chief of behavioral health services of a federally qualified health center in New Haven.
The agency provides behavioral health care to some 100,000 people in the state and operates two hospitals.
“We need strong leadership on these issues at this time, particularly when it comes to the impact that the opioid epidemic is having on our country and the growing mental health needs resulting from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.” Gov. Ned Lamont
“I appreciate Governor Lamont’s confidence in my leadership,” Navaretta said in a statement. She said she looks forward to “collaborating with sister state agencies and partnering with stakeholders statewide to continue supporting individuals struggling with mental health concerns and those affected by the opioid epidemic, by providing holistic, comprehensive, and effective services and supports that foster dignity, respect, and selfsufficiency in those we serve.”