Janet Stanek announced as new KDHE Secretary

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) - Governor Laura Kelly today announced Janet Stanek as the new Secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE). Stanek will serve in an acting capacity until the Kansas Senate confirms her as the new head of the agency. She had previously served as the Director of the State Employee Health Benefits Program (SEHBP).

“With Janet’s decades of experience as well as the relationships she has built across the medical community in Kansas, I have no doubt that she will be able to step into this role immediately and continue the agency’s critical work,” Governor Kelly said/

Prior to her role at SEHBP, Stanek spent more than 35 years in various healthcare leadership positions in Pennsylvania, western New York and Kansas, including 21 years of her career at Stormont Vail Health Topeka where she last served as chief operating officer and senior vice president.

“Since the start of the pandemic, the agency has done a remarkable job helping lead the state’s response to this once-in-a-century crisis,” Stanek said. “I look forward to working with the entire KDHE team to build on their outstanding work.”