Secretary of Health and Human Resources
Bill Hazel
William A. Hazel Jr., MD, an orthopaedic surgeon from Northern Virginia, is Virginia’s Secretary of Health and Human Resources.
After earning a degree in civil engineering from Princeton University, Dr. Hazel attended Duke University School of Medicine and completed his orthopaedic residency at the Mayo Clinic. He is a founding member of Commonwealth Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, a medical practice with facilities located across Northern Virginia.
Dr. Hazel is a former chair of the American Medical Association’s Council of Legislation, speaker and president of the Medical Society of Virginia, president of the Fairfax County Medical Society, and chairman of the Inova Health System Medical Affairs Council.
Lauded by Governor McDonnell for his “servant’s heart,” Dr. Hazel has performed joint-replacement procedures in a remote, poverty-stricken region of Bolivia, volunteered as the physician for Chantilly High School and spends time in July volunteering at the RAM Mission of Mercy in Wise, Virginia. He is a former assistant orthopaedic surgeon for the Washington Redskins and team physician for the D.C. United soccer team.
As Secretary, Dr. Hazel oversees 12 state agencies with about 15,000 employees and includes such diverse programs as Medicaid, Behavioral Health, Social Services, as well as Aging and Disability Services. These combined agencies spend approximately one-third of Virginia’s budget. He has been charged by Governor McDonnell to prepare Virginia for Health System Reform.
Among his accomplishments thus far include the Virginia Health Reform Initiative, creation of the Virginia Center for Health Innovation, negotiation of an agreement with the Department of Justice to improve services for individuals with Developmental Disabilities, and initiation of an enterprise IT system transformation for health and human resources in Virginia.
Dr. Hazel and his wife, Cindy, live in Oakton, Virginia, and are the parents of two grown children.
