About

As a top deputy and public policy advisor to two governors and a federal cabinet secretary as well as a long history of private sector service, John Duncan has the expertise, experience, and professional network to solve client issues in the complex regulatory and legislative world of insurance, healthcare and industrial relations.

Since 2017, John has been delivering expert strategic planning and regulatory advisory services to a variety of association and employer clients in the fields of labor and employment policy, insurance, healthcare, workers’ compensation, and business development.

As Director of the California Department of Industrial Relations, managing the state’s labor and employment agency with a budget of $500 million and over 3,000 employees, John implemented many of the Schwarzenegger-era reforms that helped stabilize a failing Workers’ Compensation system, and oversaw Cal/OSHA’s adoption of the nation’s first Aerosol Transmissible Disease Standards (ATD), among other successes during his tenure.

As a senior executive at US HealthWorks, John helped to guide the successful, multi- year comprehensive, public policy strategy to convert Work Comp medical payments to a rational medicare-based RBRVS-based fee schedule.

At Western Dental he organized and pursued successful government relations and industry group partnership strategies to boost Denti-Cal physician payments above their unsustainable levels resulting in increased access to dental services for Californians most in need.

In John’s long history of public service, he has overseen the California Labor Department, chaired the California Public Employment Relations Board, served on the Workforce Development Agency Transition Team in the Office of Governor-Elect Arnold Schwarzenegger, and worked as the Special Assistant to the Honorable Caspar W. Weinberger.

John has been named one of the “Most Influential People in Workers’ Compensation” by Workers’ Comp Executive. He has been the Distinguished Honoree recipient of the “Fraud Fighting Award” by the California Employers Fraud Task Force, the recipient of the “Small Business Hero Award” by Small Business California, and the recipient of the U.S. Secretary of Defense Award for “Outstanding Public Service.”

John earned a Master’s of Public Administration at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and a BA in history from UC Berkeley.

John is pleased to announce an ongoing partnership with consultant David Wehner, a former Chair of the New York State Workers’ Comp Board and New York State Compensation Insurance Fund Executive Director, to help provide clients with a national service scope in the workers’ comp industry sector. David has a keen understanding of how to navigate high stakes business, political and public policy issues and ensures clients have concise, fact-based arguments to advance their position.

John, along with three experienced partners, is currently also involved with a vital initiative to provide PCR COVID-19 test kits. Learn more about this initiative.