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2022 Annual Report
On behalf of the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), it is my sincere pleasure to present the 2022 Annual Report. Throughout the time period covered in this report, IDPH continued to battle the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our state and its people. We also, like other public health departments across Illinois and the country, responded to a myriad of other priorities that impacted the health of our communities. In some instances, these were priorities that had gone unaddressed in prior years as we directed many of our resources towards COVID-19 and the devastation it wreaked on our state.
Our work is driven by our mission:
The Illinois Department of Public Health is an advocate for and partner with the people of Illinois to re-envision health policy and promote health equity, prevent and protect against disease and injury, and prepare for health emergencies.
It is this mission that has helped us to shape our vision:
Illinoisans empowered and supported to achieve their optimal health with dignity and acceptance in diverse and thriving communities.
This year, as in past years, we strove to view the planning, execution, and evaluation of our work through a lens of equity for the health care needs of all people of our state, regardless of geography, race, gender, age, ability, sexual orientation, religion, socioeconomic status, or any of the other factors that cause us to view people differently.
Our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusivity, along with performance standards that maintain our national accreditation by the Public Health Accreditation Board, are the hallmarks of our work.
In a year marked with challenges and accomplishments, the one constant has been the focus of the people who collectively are TeamIDPH. The commitment, professionalism, and dedication they bring to their work each and every day continues to serve as an inspiration for all of us.
Along that line of inspiration, as the reporting period for this annual document closed, we looked forward to the arrival of the newly named director of IDPH, Dr. Sameer Vohra, a distinguished pediatrician and healthcare policy expert. Dr. Vohra is the Founding Chair of the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine’s (SIUSOM) Department of Population Science and Policy. He is a cross-disciplinary leader in state and national health policy formulation, who holds degrees in law and public policy, and his recent focus has been on improving health outcomes in Central and Southern Illinois. An Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Public Health, Medical Humanities, and Law at SIU-SOM, he currently serves the State of Illinois as the Interim Chair of the Children’s Mental Health Partnership.
Dr. Vohra completed a residency in pediatrics at the University of Chicago and earned a Master of Arts in public policy from the University of Chicago. He holds a medical doctorate from SIU-SOM; a juris doctorate from SIU School of Law graduating first in his class; and a Bachelor of Arts in political science and science in human culture with honors from Northwestern University.
Dr. Vohra also serves on IDPH’s Illinois State Board of Health, the Illinois Medicaid Advisory Committee, the Governor’s Rural Affairs Council, and recently completed a term on the Illinois COVID-19 Response Fund Steering Committee. He has previously served on national committees for the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Association of American Medical Colleges, and the American Medical Association, and on the Board of Trustees for the Illinois State Medical Society and Chicago Medical Society.
He has received numerous honors including a United States Fulbright Scholarship in 2009, an American Medical Association Foundation’s Excellence in Medicine Leadership Award in 2014, and was named an Edgar Fellow in 2016 as one of forty emerging political and policy leaders in Illinois. In 2020, he was named a Presidential Leadership Scholar, chosen by the George W. Bush Presidential Center, the Clinton Presidential Center, the George and Barbara Bush Foundation, and the LBJ Foundation.
We welcome Dr. Vohra and look forward to his leadership as we carry out his vision for public health in the state of Illinois.
In closing, we hope this annual chronicle of the work and accomplishments of IDPH inspires you and reflects our commitment to partner with all Illinoisans re-envisioning health policy and promoting health equity, preventing, and protecting against disease and injury, and preparing for health emergencies.
In accordance with the State Finance Act (30 ILCS 105/3(a)), I am pleased to present the fiscal year 2022 report for the Illinois Department of Public Health for the year ending June 30, 2022. Thank you for the honor and privilege of serving, and thank you Illinois, for the faith placed in our efforts.
Yours in Service and Optimal Health,
Amaal V.E. Tokars, EdD.
Assistant Director