Los Angeles County Health Agency

The Los Angeles County Health Agency (sometimes stylized as Health Agency of Los Angeles) is a Los Angeles County agency, tasked in 2015 by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors with coordinating integration efforts of the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. The health departments that compose the agency are among the United States' largest. The agency was established to coordinate and streamline the county's physical health, behavioral health, and public health care services, programs, and policies under a single integrated system of care. The Health Agency was led by Mitchell H. Katz from 2015 to 2017. Fred Leaf began serving as interim director in December 2017 and was appointed director beginning January 22, 2019.

On February 18, 2020, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors directed the three health departments to continue integration efforts through the Los Angeles County Alliance for Health Integration. The staffing and infrastructure costs of the Alliance were pooled with 50% from the Department of Health Services, 35% from the Department of Mental Health, and 15% from the Department of Public Health with the chair of the Alliance rotating annually between the three health department directors. On March 1, 2023, the seven Alliance for Health Integration staff were transferred to the Department of Mental Health.

Budget and Employees
In FY 2015–16, the three departments comprising the Los Angeles County Health Agency had a combined annual budget of US$6,942,989,000, constituting about 25% of the county's total annual budget. The County Health Agency employs 31,887 employees.

History
From 1972 to 1978, the Los Angeles County Department of Health (now the Department of Health Services) provided the full continuum of physical, mental and public health services and functions. However, in 1978, the county established the Department of Mental Health to provide behavioral health services, amid concerns that funding for mental health services was being diverted to the county's hospitals. In 2006, the Department of Public Health was separated from the Department of Health Services, during a major budget deficit.

On January 13, 2015, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors publicly directed the Chief Executive Office to assess the feasibility of consolidating the county's three health departments into a single unified health agency. This was preceded by correspondence between the Board and Mitchell Katz, the then current director of Health Services, who had submitted a confidential proposal to integrate the three departments on January 2, 2015.

On October 6, 2015, the Board adopted an ordinance to create the Health Agency, effective November 5, 2015. The proposal was criticized by community advocates, providers, and labor unions, who have argued that physical health services would be prioritized above mental and public health services, and potential conflicts of interest. The Health Agency is led by the Health Agency Director, who oversees, manages, coordinates, monitors and evaluates the Agency's programs and services.

During the COVID-19 pandemic the department was criticized for its handling of nursing homes.