On July 8, 2026, The Maine Mirror sent a formal request for comment to Lindsay Hammes, Communications Director for the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, regarding our reporting on the restructuring of the Office of Child and Family Services’ Children’s Emergency Services (CES) unit.

(Screenshot of The Maine Mirror’s July 8, 2026 request for comment email sent to DHHS Communications Director Lindsay Hammes regarding the CES restructuring.)

The request summarized the reporting, linked to the published article, and asked the department to address several questions, including whether it continues to stand by the rationale outlined in Deputy Commissioner Molly Bogart’s April 21, 2026 email, what outcomes have resulted from the restructuring, how the department responds to concerns raised by frontline staff regarding child safety, and whether there was any additional context the department believed readers should understand.

The request also informed DHHS that The Maine Mirror had submitted an additional Freedom of Access Act request seeking the records the department identified as informing its decision, including the CES time study, national review of after-hours policies, Katahdin data, original CES workgroup recommendations, implementation records, and related decision documents.

As of July 11, 2026, The Maine Mirror has not received a response to that request for comment.

If the department provides a statement or additional information at any time, The Maine Mirror will publish it and update its reporting accordingly.

Original article: https://themainemirror.com/2026/07/08/maine-dhhs-ocfs-ces-restructuring-internal-emails-child-safety-concerns/