ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Anne Arundel County will soon name a new Health Officer.
After four years Dr. Nilesh Kaylanaraman is stepping down from his post to take over as Deputy Secretary for Public Health Services at the Maryland Department of Health.
His last day will be March 21. Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman promoted current Deputy Health Officer, Tonii Gedin, to Acting Health Officer.
Kaylanaraman spent a large portion of his time leading the County through the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Pitttman, Anne Arundel County had the third-lowest COVID-19 death rate in the state.
He credited Kaylanaraman with early initiation of contact tracing and case management.
“We all knew that Dr. Kalyanaraman was a superstar when we hired him, and he turned out to be exactly the leader that we needed. Dr. Kalyanaraman led with compassion, strength, and brilliance, integrating public health into every corner of local governance, and leading our defense against a virus that took the lives of 1,255 county residents,” said Pittman. “I am thrilled that the Moore administration recognized Dr. Kalyanaraman’s talents and is putting him into a position where he can continue to deliver not only for the nearly 600,000 residents of our county, but also for the 6 million residents of Maryland."
During his tenure Kalyanaraman also helped develop and implement a Gun Violence Intervention Team to address gun violence as a public health issue.
Additionally Anne Arundel County experienced a decrease in opioid overdoses and deaths while Kalyanaraman was in office.
“We’ve accomplished a lot, including responding to a global pandemic, that improved the health of all residents in Anne Arundel County, particularly those with the greatest needs,” said Kalyanaraman. “I look forward to the opportunity to continue advancing public health at the state level.”
