Juliet Charron to Lead Idaho Department of Health and Welfare

Boise, Idaho - Governor Brad Little announced on July 31 he appointed Juliet Charron to serve as the new director overseeing Idaho’s largest state agency, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare (DHW).

Charron succeeds outgoing director Alex Adams, who was nominated by President Donald Trump to serve as the Assistant Secretary for the Administration of Children and Families at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. The U.S. Senate Finance Committee voted today to advance Adams’ nomination to the full Senate.

"Juliet Charron brings an impressive level of knowledge, experience, and leadership ability to lead Health and Welfare, an agency that serves hundreds of thousands of Idahoans through its various programs. I am confident she will lead Health and Welfare with integrity and transparency and with an eye for delivering services with the greatest efficiency,” Governor Little said. “I want to thank Alex Adams for his many years of outstanding service in my administration. His visionary approach over the years helped us achieve big priorities for Idaho and I am excited to see what he achieves for the American people while working under President Trump.”

Charron has been serving as the DHW Deputy Director over Medicaid and Behavioral Health. In the role, she has overseen the administration of the Idaho Medicaid program which serves approximately 350,000 Idahoans, along with the Division of Behavioral Health, Idaho’s Behavioral Health Authority.

Prior to her move to Idaho, she held leadership positions with the Texas Medicaid program and the Texas Office of Inspector General. Charron previously worked within a community-based health plan in Arizona.

Charron received her bachelor’s degree in public policy, planning, and management from the University of Oregon. She holds a master’s degree in public health from the University of Arizona.

“It is an honor and a privilege to continue to serve the people of Idaho and lead the dedicated team at the Department of Health and Welfare as we strengthen the health, safety, and independence of Idahoans. I look forward to collaboratively working with our many stakeholders, including state policymakers, advocates, Idaho taxpayers, and those we serve, to tirelessly pursue clear outcomes in our programs and services, provide excellent customer service, and deliver aggressive transparency across the agency,” Charron said.

Charron led the following areas of focus and accomplishment during her tenure as DHW Deputy Director over Medicaid and Behavioral Health:

• Strengthened contract and financial oversight over several of the largest contracts in the state leading to improved health outcomes for Idahoans and cost savings for taxpayers.
• Supported targeted efforts to improve care coordination and service availability for youth and adults with complex behavioral health and disability service needs.
• Championed data driven decision making to identify areas to contain costs and target program integrity efforts.
• Fostered stakeholder engagement and trust through regular, transparent public information sharing on program budgets and operations through standing public reports and educational resources for stakeholders.
• Strengthened tribal partnerships between Idaho’s five federally recognized tribes and Idaho Medicaid through improved communication, coordination, enhancing tribal healthcare workforce, and bolstering programmatic requirements to support Medicaid covered tribal members.

Charron will assume her new role as director on Sept. 15, 2025.

Charron's professional photo can be found at this link: https://healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/about-dhw/leadership-bios-and-photos