Am I missing something? A headline on Aug. 20 read “DHHS backlogs irritate Mainers.” There was another article back on June 18 regarding the same problem.

The person in charge of administering Department of Health and Human Services programs is Mary Mayhew who, if I remember correctly, was involved with the shredding mess at DHHS in 2013.

Why is Mayhew still in the employment of the state of Maine?

According to latest figures found on the maineopengov.org website, DHHS lists a budget of more than $170 million. That is nearly as much as the next two agencies put together.

The average salary within DHHS (again, according to maineopengov.org) is nearly $42,000. Of course, there are many working for DHHS who are not making that pay, and there are many making far more than that.

The problem, as I see it, is the state has an individual who does not seem to be able to manage a huge agency. It is time to get rid of Mayhew and some of the assistant directors and deputy commissioners and hire some working folks to get DHHS back on track.

Alan Elze, Auburn

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