NEW BUREAU CHIEF

The Nevada State Health Division has named a new chief of its Bureau of Licensure and Certification, officials announced Tuesday. Marla McDade Williams replaces Lisa Jones, who retired in late March.

Jones was criticized for not shutting down a Las Vegas endoscopy center in March after lawmakers learned licensing bureau inspectors had documented several unsafe infectious-disease control practices at the facility in early January.

Southern Nevada Health District and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials also documented the reuse of syringes and single-use vials of medication, which they believe led some patients to contract hepatitis C.

As chief of the licensing bureau, Williams will oversee the regulation of health facilities as well as medical laboratories.

Williams previously served as the program manager for the health division's Women's Health Connection. She also served as program manager for the health division's hepatitis program.

Before she joined the health division Williams was a senior research analyst for the Legislative Counsel Bureau and participated on several committees, including the Legislative Committee on Health Care and the Assembly Committee on Health and Human Services.