Dr. Umair Shah Appointed Next Washington Secretary of Health

Governor Jay Inslee appointed Dr. Umair Shah as the state's new Secretary of Health Tuesday, replacing current Health Secretary John Wiseman.

Shah said it's a bittersweet announcement, since he's leaving behind so many valuable friends and family in the Houston area. He currently serves as executive director and local health authority for Harris County Public Health in Texas.

"We have five million people in Harris County. It's larger than 20-some states by population." Shah stated, "It's geographically larger than Rhode Island and just under the state of Delaware. So it's pretty big. It's not just that we're geographically large, we are incredibly diverse. There is no majority population in our community."

Harris County is the nation's third-largest county.

Shah says outbreaks of COVID-19 in Washington State have not been as bad as other parts of the country due to measures enacted during outbreaks in April and June.

"Don't say that everything is fine, because you just don't know." continued Shah, "This is one of those super-slick viruses that, when you take your eye off the ball, very quickly it can take hold of a community."

Before taking the helm in Harris County, Shah served as the Chief Medical Officer of Galveston County Health District and has been an emergency department physician at Houston's DeBakey VA Hospital for over 20 years.

Shah will step into his new role December 21st.