Larry Johnson

Commissioner Larry Johnson represents District 3 of DeKalb County. Because of his background and efforts in the field of public health, Commissioner Larry Johnson was appointed in 2005 to chair the Health Disparities Subcommittee of the Health Steering Committee for NACo, the National Association of Counties. In 2008, he was appointed as Vice Chair of the NACo Health Steering Committee. The Health Steering Committee has jurisdiction, on a national policy level, over all matters pertaining to health care delivery and financing including: indigent care health, care for the uninsured, Medicaid, Medicare, long-term care, local public health programs, mental health, substance abuse and development disabilities.

As DeKalb County Commissioner, Johnson started “DeKalb Walks. For the Health of It”, an initiative designed to get DeKalb residents to focus on improving their health through walking. Under this initiative, he designated walking as the official exercise of DeKalb — the only locality in Georgia or the U.S. to do so. His goal is to get DeKalb residents healthy and improve their overall healthful lifestyles. Another initiative that Commissioner Johnson has instituted is the Prescription Discount Drug Card. Through the National Association of Counties (NACo), Commissioner Johnson implemented the program in DeKalb County where participants in the program will save up to 20% off of their prescription drug costs not covered by any other insurance.

Commissioner Larry Johnson was also recently elected to the 2020-2021 Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG or Georgia’s County Association) Board of Managers as a representative for the National Association of Counties (NACo). Johnson, the current Second Vice President of NACo, currently oversees 3,069 counties, 3.5 Million employees and 300 Million constituents will now serve as a liaison between the state and national county associations. He will work with DeKalb County Commissioner Jeff Rader and Lamar County Commissioner Nancy Thrash who also serve as NACo Representatives for ACCG.

Commissioner Johnson is the former communications director for the Association of Black Cardiologist, and former manager for the Fulton County Department of Health & Wellness, where he managed the REACH Program — Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health — a federal initiative that included the goal of eliminating racial and ethnic disparities in health by the year 2010. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Community Health and a Master Degree in Public Health.