John H. Coombs serves as Chief of Staff for the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department, one of the nation's busiest combined fire and EMS systems. As principal policy advisor to the Fire and EMS Chief, he oversees strategic planning, legislative and government affairs, performance management, labor relations, grants administration, and other executive functions.
Over more than sixteen years in senior leadership roles in the Government of the District of Columbia, Coombs has helped shape public safety, health, and emergency response policy at both the agency and executive levels of government. Prior to joining DC Fire and EMS, he served in the Executive Office of the Mayor, where he was the Mayor's principal policy and legislative liaison to the District's public safety and health agencies, coordinating complex initiatives across multiple organizations and stakeholders.
Coombs has led and advised major initiatives involving emergency medical services transformation, community risk reduction, workforce development, public health integration, capital planning, and preparedness. His work has helped advance innovative programs including a 911 nurse triage model, a sobering and stabilization center, a low-titer whole blood trauma program, a citywide AED initiative, and the District's first public paramedic training program.
He has played key leadership roles during high-profile incidents and complex intergovernmental responses, including supporting executive coordination and public communications during the January 2025 Potomac River mid-air collision response. His professional interests include crisis leadership, emergency management, interagency coordination, organizational strategy, and the evolving role of fire and EMS agencies in community resilience and homeland security.
Coombs is a graduate of Harvard Kennedy School's Senior Executives in State and Local Government program, holds a Juris Doctor from The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law, and is admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia and Maryland.