Teresa Miller was appointed By Kansas Governor Laura Kelly to the Governor’s Commission on Racial Equity and Justice. Teresa recently joined the Kansas Health Foundation (KHF) as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in May 2021. She brings more than six years of experience serving in state government in Pennsylvania, most recently as Secretary for the Department of Human Services. In this role, Miller led a department working to address health disparities and racial inequities, finding innovative ways to address social determinants of health like food insecurity, housing and employment, connecting Medicaid enrollees to work supports, redesigning employment and training programs for Pennsylvania’s lowest income residents and supporting Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable residents through the pandemic. As the leader of the department, Miller oversaw a staff of approximately 16,000 and a total budget of more than $45 billion.
Prior to her time at Pennsylvania DHS, Miller served as the state’s insurance commissioner, beginning in 2015. As commissioner, Miller renewed the department’s commitment to consumer protection and reestablished an emphasis on consumer education and financial literacy in partnership with other state agencies, consumer groups, and advocates across Pennsylvania. Miller led the Insurance Department through attempts to replace the Affordable Care Act and advocated across Pennsylvania and to the United States Congress in defense of the law and how it has helped more than a million Pennsylvanians directly access health coverage and countless others through its consumer protections.
Before coming to Pennsylvania, Miller held leadership roles in the federal government’s Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and was administrator of the insurance division at the State of Oregon’s Department of Consumer and Business Services. Currently, Miller is serving on the Congressional Budget Office’s Panel of Health Advisers, providing feedback on federal policies and legislation that affect health care consumers.
A native of Oregon, Miller received a juris doctor from Willamette University College of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Psychology from Pacific Lutheran University.