OC Health Care Agency announced that new director Dr. Veronica Kelley has been promoted from her role as director of the agency's behavioral health division.
The previous director, Dr. Clayton Chau, resigned from his position in June last year.
“Orange County and I are very excited to have Dr. Kelly assume the HCA director position,” CEO Frank Kim said in a statement. “Dr. Kelly has demonstrated tremendous leadership strength in his role as director of behavioral health services and has guided us through an extraordinary period of transition in the field of mental health and recovery care.”
Kelly has been leading the county's behavioral health services since December 2021.
She has more than 33 years of experience in the behavioral health field and has been a licensed clinical social worker for nearly 25 years, according to a Monday, March 25, county announcement. Her career began in 1999 in behavioral health at the Health Care Agency. Before leaving for San Bernardino County, she worked for the county's Department of Behavioral Health for 13 years, including six years as director.
Since returning to HCA, Kelly has been responsible for reorganizing the department to help Orange County address health behavior changes, including changes to Medi-Cal, according to a county statement. She also worked with local law enforcement agencies to help divert mental health and homelessness calls from public safety personnel to mental health workers.
Kelly's promotion to health care commissioner was effective March 22.
