Miller-Meeks selected for Public Health post

Governor-elect Terry Branstad has announced Dr. Mariannette Miller-Meeks will serve as head of the Iowa Department of Public Health in the Branstad-Reynolds administration.

“Dr. Miller-Meeks' dedication to public health is evident from her service and leadership in various medical organizations, and I look forward to working with her as we work to make Iowa the healthiest state in the nation,” Branstad said.

The Iowa Department of Public Health works with local health organizations, lawmakers, health care providers, and businesses to educate the citizens of Iowa on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

“I am honored to have been chosen by Gov. Branstad and Lt. Governor-elect (Kim) Reynolds to head the Iowa Department of Public Health,” said Miller-Meeks. “I look forward to working with the Legislature, public health organizations, health care providers and the community to maintain and advance the health of all Iowans.”

Miller-Meeks, an unsuccessful GOP candidate in Iowa's U.S. House 2nd District, completed her undergraduate degree in nursing at Texas Christian University and earned her M.D. from The University of Texas Health Science Center. Miller-Meeks, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserves and ophthalmologist, has served as the first woman president of the Iowa Medical Society and was the first women on the faculty in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Iowa and councilor for Iowa to the American Academy of Ophthalmology. She has resigned her position as alternate delegate to the AMA upon being considered for this appointment. She has been volunteering at a free medical clinic in Cedar Rapids helping families who have fallen on hard times and is also a CASA volunteer.

Miller-Meeks and her husband, Curt, reside in Ottumwa and have two children.