Deanna Durica, MPH

Deanna Durica is the director of Public Health Policy for Cook County Department of Public Health (CCDPH). She works in collaboration with staff and leaders to advance equity-focused policy change in CCDPH’s jurisdiction.

Previously, Deanna served as the government liaison for the department’s COVID-19 response, where she developed plans for mitigation measures and conducted outreach to the leaders and organizations tasked with implementing them. She also served as the director of CCDPH’s Lead Poisoning Prevention and Healthy Homes Unit. In that role, she coordinated the work of the interdisciplinary team focused on eliminating lead exposure in the region. Together, the team captured additional funding, expanded lead hazard abatement services, and added “Healthy Homes” remediation to the program’s offerings for families.

Before joining CCDPH, Deanna advanced policy, systems and environmental change at childhood advocacy and social service organizations, where she helped to develop the Preschool for All plan for young children in our state and served in the Illinois Governor’s Office of Early Childhood Development.  Deanna holds a master’s degree in public health with a focus on maternal and child health from the University of Illinois at Chicago.