speaker

Kody Kinsey

MPP

Medicine

Public Health

Kody H. Kinsley serves as Secretary of the NC Department of Health and Human Services; appointed to the cabinet position by Governor Roy Cooper and unanimously confirmed by the North Carolina Senate.

Secretary Kinsley has identified three priority areas of focus: Behavioral Health & Resilience, Child & Family Wellbeing, and Building a Strong & Inclusive Workforce. By focusing on these three areas, Secretary Kinsley believes the state can make smart investments that drive health for individuals and value for public resources.

As the COVID-19 Pandemic and national public health emergency conclude, Kinsley and the department have transitioned from emergency response to preparedness. Alongside this transition, Secretary Kinsley advanced the department's key priorities through the passing of Medicaid Expansion and Governor Cooper’s $1 billion pledge for behavioral health services. The implementation and expansion of Medicaid extends healthcare coverage to previously underserved populations, providing critical access to health services for thousands of North Carolinians. Secretary Kinsley’s accomplishments exemplify his dedication to improving health equity throughout the state.

Secretary Kinsley oversees a department that has broad responsibility for all aspects of health and human services, a staff of 18,000 and an annual budget of $38 billion. Kinsley joined the Department in 2018 where he most recently served as Chief Deputy Secretary for Health and Operations Lead for North Carolina’s COVID-19 response.

Prior to returning home to North Carolina, Secretary Kinsley served as the presidentially appointed Assistant Secretary for Management for the United States Department of the Treasury under two Administrations. In that role, he functioned as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer with a broad scope of responsibility for the agency, its nine bureaus, and 100,000 employees.

With deep health policy, operational and leadership experience, Secretary Kinsley’s career spans the public and private sectors. These roles include positions at the White House, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and leading operations for a behavioral health care service provider in western North Carolina. Secretary Kinsley is a Fellow of the Civil Society Fellowship, a partnership of the Anti-Defamation League and the Aspen Institute, and he is also an Adjunct Professor at the School of Government at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Brevard College in Brevard, NC, and his Master of Public Policy from the University of California, at Berkeley.