DHCFP Leadership

Cody Phinney
Acting Administrator
Ms. Phinney is a Nevada native, and has been in State service since 1998. Ms. Phinney has a Master’s in Public Health with a concentration in Health Services Administration; as well as a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations. Cody started with the mental health programs doing quality assurance. She has been an agency manager and managed the Federal Community Mental Health Services Block Grants. She has an extensive background working in health and human service programs, including program and division oversight at the executive level in Nevada State government. Cody has developed a strong background in program oversight, quality assurance and performance improvement.
DuAne Young
Deputy Administrator
DuAne has nearly 20 years of experience in the field of behavioral and public health working previously in the areas of criminal justice, community mental health, substance abuse, drunk driving prevention and education. He has worked previously in the public sector in Indiana for eight years beginning as a mental health evaluator within the county courts and leaving as Assistant Administrator for the Court Drug and Alcohol Program within State Court Administration. He worked in the private sector in various capacities including overseeing the project development and implementation strategy of the 2013 publication of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) Criteria. Within the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services he has served within the Division of Public and Behavioral Health (DPBH) as the Tobacco Program Coordinator, Director’s Office as the Health Policy Analyst and the Division of Health Care Financing and Policy as the Chief of Behavioral Health and Pharmacy Services. He most recently served as Deputy Administrator of DPBH over Clinical Services overseeing a workforce of over 1,000 employees providing direct client services in both public and behavioral health systems. DuAne received his B.S. in Family Studies from Miami University and M.S. in Management from Indiana Wesleyan University. He is also ABD status in the Organizational Leadership Doctoral Program at Indiana Wesleyan University. All his post graduate work has focused on leadership practices within varying healthcare settings.
Ellen Crecelius
Chief Financial Officer
Ellen Crecelius served the last four years as the Deputy Director for Fiscal Services and Information Technology at DHHS, providing oversight of the six divisions on budget development and management, contracting, and other fiscal issues. Ellen also oversaw the department’s data analytics efforts. In previous DHHS positions, she coordinated caseload data, developed caseload forecasts, and undertook research and statistical analysis of policy and fiscal issues. Ellen holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Connecticut with a concentration in Health Economics and Public Finance. She also holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of California, Davis, with majors in Economics and Russian.
Sandie Ruybalid
Information Services Chief

Sandie Ruybalid, Certified Public Manager, has been with the Division of Health Care Financing and Policy for 16 years.  She began her career with the State of Nevada in 1994 in Workers Compensation Insurance.  She has over 24 years of experience in the Healthcare Insurance industry, with a focus on Medicaid Management Information Systems (MMIS).  She was appointed to her role as Chief of Information Services in 2013 and oversees the Divisions Project Management Office, Business Process Management Unit, IT Operations, Information Security Officer, and Application Development team in addition to the Divisions outsourced MMIS Vendors.  She is the Project Director for the Division's MMIS Modernization project.  She was appointed by Governor Brian Sandoval as a Management representative on the Employee-Management Committee and serves as the Co-Vice Chair.

She received her Certificate of Public Manager designation in April of 2016.