Dr. Timothy W. Westlake serves as Chief of Staff at SAMHSA, supporting agency leadership and operations that advance national mental health and substance use priorities. He is a board-certified emergency physician with more than 25 years of clinical experience practicing community emergency medicine, having led federal and state policy efforts addressing the opioid and fentanyl crisis informed by over 29 years personal long-term recovery and a commitment to integrative approaches that support resilience and wellness.
Dr. Westlake played a central role in the development of fentanyl-related substance class scheduling policy, originating the initial legislative framework in Wisconsin in 2016 and contributing to its evolution through enactment in federal law as the HALT Fentanyl Act in 2025. He also drafted the Department of Veterans Affairs prescription opioid reform provisions included in the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA).
At the state level, Dr. Westlake served as Chair of the Wisconsin Medical Examining Board and as a member of the Wisconsin Controlled Substances Board. He was the physician architect of Wisconsin’s prescription opioid reform strategy and served on the Governor’s Task Force on Opioid Abuse. He coauthored and edited the Wisconsin Medical Examining Board Opioid Prescribing Guidelines and founded the Wisconsin Coalition for Prescription Drug Abuse Reduction.
Dr. Westlake received his undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin, his Doctor of Medicine from the Medical College of Wisconsin, and completed his residency in emergency medicine at Eastern Virginia Medical School. He has been a Gracie jiu jitsu black belt instructor and yoga practitioner since 2008. He has been married to his wife, Richele, for 31 years and is a proud father of two daughters.