Dr. Edward Simmer, MD, is the director of the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC). Appointed to the position by the S.C. Board of Health and Environmental Control, he assumed his duties as agency director, upon confirmation on Feb. 4, 2021. Prior to being confirmed as agency director, Dr. Simmer served over thirty years on active duty in the United States Navy. In his most recent assignment, he served as the first Chief Medical Officer and Deputy Director for the TRICARE Health Plan at the Defense Health Agency in Falls Church, VA. In this role he was responsible for overseeing all clinical aspects of the civilian medical and dental care provided to the 9.5 million active-duty service members, military retirees, and their families worldwide. He was also responsible for coordinating efforts between private sector care and the military services, modernizing the TRICARE benefit, and developing the next set of TRICARE contracts, known as T-5 as part of a fully integrated system of care. He assumed this position in September 2014. He served as the first Officer-in-Charge of the Defense Health Agency Navy Element, creating the command from 27 formerly separate units, and leading over 250 Sailors assigned to DHA worldwide. A native of Ohio, Dr. Simmer received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Hiram College in 1986, his Doctor of Medicine degree from the Saint Louis University School of Medicine via the Navy Health Professions Scholarship Program in 1990, and his Master of Public Health degree from the Eastern Virginia Medical School/Old Dominion University Consortium in 2001. He is board certified in general and forensic psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. In addition, he is certified in administrative psychiatry by the American Psychiatric Association.