FY 2017 Annual Performance Plan and Report - Overview

Topics on this page: Mission Statement | HHS Organizational Structure | Organizational Chart Department of Health and Human Services

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is the United States government’s principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves. HHS is responsible for almost a quarter of all federal expenditures and administers more grant dollars than all other federal agencies combined.

Eleven operating divisions, including eight agencies in the United States Public Health Service and three human service agencies, administer HHS’s programs. In addition, sixteen staff divisions provide leadership, direction, and policy and management guidance to the Department.

Through its programming and other activities, HHS works closely with state, local, and U.S. territorial governments. The federal government has a unique legal and political government-to-government relationship with tribal governments and a special trust obligation to provide services for American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs) based on this association. HHS works with tribal governments, urban Indian organizations and other tribal organizations to facilitate greater consultation and coordination between state and tribal governments on health and human services.

HHS also has strong partnerships with the private sector and nongovernmental organizations. The Department works with partners in the private sector, such as regulated industries, academic institutions, trade organizations, and advocacy groups. The Department recognizes that leveraging resources from organizations and individuals with shared interests allows HHS to accomplish its mission in ways that are the least burdensome and most beneficial to the American public. Private sector grantees, such as academic institutions and faith-based and neighborhood partnerships, provide many HHS-funded services at the local level. In addition, HHS works closely with other federal departments and international partners to coordinate its efforts to ensure the maximum benefit for the public.

Mission Statement

The mission of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is to enhance the health and well-being of Americans by providing for effective health and human services and by fostering sound, sustained advances in the sciences underlying medicine, public health, and social services.

HHS Organizational Structure

The Department includes eleven operating divisions that administer HHS programs. These operating divisions are:

• Administration for Children and Families (ACF)
• Administration for Community Living (ACL)
• Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
• Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR)
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
• Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
• Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
• Indian Health Service (IHS)
• National Institutes of Health (NIH)
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

In addition, staff divisions provide leadership, direction, and policy and management guidance to the Department. Many of these divisions have responsibilities for achieving performance objectives, contained in this report, including,

• Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration (ASA)
• Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR)
• Immediate Office of the Secretary (IOS)
• Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH)
• Office of Inspector General (OIG)
• Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals (OMHA)
• Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC)

Throughout this document the operating divisions and staff divisions will be collectively referred to as HHS components. The HHS organizational chart is available at http://www.hhs.gov/about/orgchart/.

Organizational Chart Department of Health and Human Services

Also, see the text version of the HHS Organizational Chart with links to agencies and their charts.