Matt Richards
Deputy Chief of Staff—Health, Office of the President
Bio:
Matt is currently Deputy Chief of Staff—Health in the Office of Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. In this role, Matt oversees the health and human services portfolio for the Offices Under the President including Cook County Health, public health, behavioral health, and programs related to health and housing. This involves oversight of the operations of programs, policy development, partnership development across levels of government and with the private sector, and communications and legislative strategy for health and human service programs.
Prior to his current role, Matt was Deputy Commissioner of Behavioral Health at the Chicago Department of Public Health where he served as the City of Chicago’s lead subject matter expert on behavioral health from 2019-2024 during the Lightfoot and early Johnson administrations. Matt is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and teaches graduate school social work and public health.