Governor appoints COVID-10 Response Director

CARSON CITY – Gov. Steve Sisolak has appointed Caleb Cage to serve as the State of Nevada COVID-19 Response Director. 

Cage will help direct and coordinate the statewide response to COVID-19 through the end of December. Cage’s new position is funded by federal dollars at no cost to the state. 

“Mr. Cage has proven invaluable to the State in its effort to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. This new, expanded role will help propel the State of Nevada forward as we continue our gradual, phased-in reopening and fortify our response to this unprecedented public health crisis,” said Gov. Sisolak.

Cage is the former head of the State Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security and most recently the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Workforce Development and Community Colleges at the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE).

In his new role he’ll coordinate resources and the work across multiple state, local and federal entities to respond to COVID-19, including the following: 

• Federal agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS);  
• State agencies, including the Division of Public and Behavioral Health (DPBH) within the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), the Division of Emergency Management (DEM), and the Nevada State Public Health Lab (NSPHL); and
• Local agencies, including local emergency management, public health authorities, and city and county officials.  

The governor has placed an emphasis on testing effort and capacity; contact tracing; and coordination of resources to support the ongoing and expanding work in these areas across the state.

Cage is a native Nevadan who has served in various capacities in public service for the last 18 years. Immediately following college, he was commissioned as an artillery officer in the United States Army, serving in Germany and Iraq over the next five years.  

Upon returning to Nevada in 2007, Cage served in various capacities, including as a policy advisor in the Lieutenant Governor’s Office as well as the Governor’s Office, in addition to leading the Nevada Office of Veterans Services and the Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security.