Meena Seshamani

Seshamani was an assistant professor of otolaryngology at the Georgetown University School of Medicine.^[7] She was later the director of the Office of Health Reform at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services during the Obama administration, where she helped shape and implement the Affordable Care Act, afterwards working as the vice president of clinical care transformation at MedStar Health from 2017 to 2021.^[4][8] Seshamani later joined the Biden administration, advising the administration on its COVID-19 response before ultimately being appointed to serve as the deputy administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in July 2021.^[4][7][5] During her tenure, Seshamani was involved with implementing drug price negotiations passed in the Inflation Reduction Act.^[9]

In February 2025, Maryland Governor Wes Moore named Seshamani as the next Maryland Secretary of Health, succeeding Laura Herrera Scott, who resigned at the end of the month.^[10] Herrera Scott's resignation came amid the 2025 legislative session, during which Moore proposed $457 million in budget cuts to the Maryland Department of Health's Developmental Disabilities Administration (though these cuts were later lowered to $164 million following negotiations between the governor and state legislative leaders), and a investigative report by The Washington Post that uncovered complaints of patient abuse and violence at the Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center.^[11][12] Seshamani took office on April 8, 2025.^[10]

During her tenure, Seshamani focused on prioritizing behavioral health to improve drug treatments and prevent overdose deaths in Maryland, sought to rebuild trust with the disability community after funding cuts during the 2025 legislative session, and worked to implement systems to assist individuals affected by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which made cuts to Medicaid and expanded work requirements for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.^[13][14] The Maryland Department of Health also made progress in addressing staffing shortages and safety complaints at the Perkins Hospital Center.^[15]

Seshamani met her future husband, Craig Mullaney, when they were both students in Oxford. They married in 2005.^[1] Mullaney filed for divorce in May 2013.^[16]