Mark T. Benton, is the Deputy Secretary for Health for the NC Department of Health and Human Services. In that role, he serves on the department’s executive leadership team and oversees a portfolio consisting of the Division of Health Services Regulation, Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities & Substance Abuse Services, Division of Public Health, and the Division of State Operated Healthcare Facilities.
Prior to accepting his appointment as Deputy Secretary, Mark most recently led the NC Division of Public Health. He was also the former Managing Partner of The Paratum Group, LLC, a Raleigh-based healthcare consulting firm, and was the former chief operating officer and acting president for NC Community Care Networks, a non-profit organization that provides care coordination and population health management to the state’s Medicaid recipients and other insured and uninsured residents. In addition, he was the Senior Program Officer with the Milbank Memorial Fund where he managed their health projects, including work with a bipartisan group of senior health policymakers across the US and abroad.
Mark has worked for 25 years in NC’s health and human services organization. Key leadership positions included: Assistant Secretary for Public Health and State Health Official (SHO), Director of the state’s Medicaid & SCHIP programs; Assistant Director and Chief of Planning for the state’s health care licensure/regulatory agency; and senior health care policy analyst to the Secretary.