A Healthy Minnesota
As a cancer survivor still living with the long term impacts of chemotherapy and someone who is at higher risk for cancer in the future, fighting alongside you to make sure every Minnesotan can get the lifesaving care they need is deeply personal to me. I have devoted my life to caring for others, and as I prepare to soon become a physician myself, I believe that we can create a healthcare system that truly prioritizes your health needs rather than diverting larger and larger amounts of money into the hands of wealthy companies.
I believe healthcare is a human right, which is why I’ll continue to advocate for:
Lowering Prescription Drug and Medical Care Costs
We do not have a shortage of money to fund affordable access to our healthcare system for everyone, rather, we have a system almost entirely designed to be inefficient and create increasingly costly hurdles to accessing medical care. When I served in the legislature, I worked to: ban non-medical midyear formulary switching that resulted in thousands of people being locked in health insurance contracts despite having their essential medications removed from their formulary; fund research for improving the treatment of rare diseases; successfully passed stronger hospital billing transparency requirements, and successfully passed a prohibition on insurance companies requiring stage 4 metastatic cancer patients from having to try and fail on multiple drugs before covering the treatment their clinician recommended.
Work to develop and implement a universal healthcare system in Minnesota that makes sure you and your family can get the care you need, when you need it while also supporting a just transition to reduce economic displacement in our health insurance sector
Funding and implementing an accessible MinnesotaCare buy-in public option
Removing pharmacy benefit managers from the administration of MNCare and Medical Assistance to save taxpayers at least $25 million annually
Passing sweeping prior authorization reforms to make sure your healthcare decisions remain between you and your clinician, without arbitrary barriers put in place by health insurance companies
Enacting strong protections against the use of AI and surveillance pricing that are increasingly used to make care more costly and out of reach
Increasing clinician reimbursements through medicaid, fund medical education and innovation, and work to reduce administrative bloat driving up costs
supporting Minnesotans with DISABILITIES
Minnesotans living with disabilities deserve to be able to live, work, and thrive in their communities without fear of losing access to life sustaining supportive services. The federal government’s efforts to slash Medicaid funding threatens the stability of thousands of people in our state and we need to be ready to implement policies to protect critical resources for our community members and their families. As a former personal care assistant, and throughout my medical training, I have seen firsthand how robust supportive services, accessible infrastructure, and supporting the workers who make those services possible helps to ensure all people can live happy, healthy lives.
Prioritize funding for long-term accessibility to home and community-based services to ensure people living with disabilities are able to stay in their homes and communities
Invest in statewide initiatives to improve the accessibility of sidewalks, transit, mobility assistance devices in clinics/hospitals, and housing
Continue to work to increase medical assistance coverage of dental services and implement thorough protections against discrimination in healthcare settings
Increase asset and income limits for people living with disabilities who rely on home and community-based services
opposing corporate consolidation and healthcare monopolies
We have seen increasing corporate control of healthcare, both in Minnesota and nationally, with profits often being prioritized over patients and debilitating increases in out-of-pocket costs every year. This trend has resulted in worsening disparities in health outcomes, growing moral injury and burn out among healthcare workers, and fewer options for accessible healthcare services. We need to protect Minnesota patients from profit-motivated corporate consolidation to preserve healthcare access and bring down the skyrocketing cost of medical care.
Prohibit private equity companies from acquiring medical services like hospitals, clinics, and nursing homes
Support stronger oversight and regulatory safeguards against corporate healthcare monopolization
Cap healthcare company executive compensation at $300,000/year and implement restrictions on overhead costs
Support initiatives like Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act to secure safe staffing and reduce burn out
Evidence-based firearm safety and gun violence prevention
Gun violence is a public health crisis responsible for countless heartbreaking tragedies in our community and Minnesota as a whole. We have a responsibility to protect our kids, loved ones, and community members from losing their lives to gun violence. No one should have to live in fear in their schools, workplaces, or homes. I was a co-author and strong supporter of red flag laws and universal background checks when I served in the legislature. I believe we can work together to protect our communities from gun violence while upholding the rights of law abiding gun owners.
Re-instate Minnesota’s ban on binary triggers
Establish an Office of Gun Violence Prevention to develop a comprehensive, statewide public health approach to tailoring gun violence interruption strategies to meet community needs
Expand Medicaid coverage for gun violence prevention and intervention programs
Addressing disparities in health outcomes and advancing a just healthcare system
Minnesota has some of the greatest healthcare resources in the country, but we also have significant disparities in health outcomes based on race, gender, income, sexual orientation, and immigration status. We need to be intentional as a state about understanding and rectifying the root causes of healthcare inequities so everyone can receive the personalized care they deserve.
Enact policies that combat racism in medicine, including eliminating race-based clinical algorithms and reducing disparities in maternal and infant mortality experienced disproportionately by people of color
Increase funding for doula and lactation consultant services that have been proven to significantly improve maternal and infant health while reducing mortality rates
Continue to protect access to reproductive freedom
Mandate insurance coverage for hormone therapy to treat symptoms of peri-menopause and menopause
Protect access to gender affirming care
Implement programs like those in Tennessee and Delaware to leverage medicaid funding to the lower cost burden of diapers and infant formula while creating robust postpartum social supportive services