In 3rd Congressional District, Ramirez and Oakley find some common ground on health care
In a rare example of bipartisan agreement between rival candidates on the issue, Democratic U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez and Republican challenger Angel Oakley both support universal health care for Americans — but to different degrees.
Ramirez, a Chicagoan seeking a third term in Congress, and Oakley, a first-time congressional candidate from Wheaton, are facing off in Illinois’ 3rd District. They talked about health care and other issues in questionnaires for the Daily Herald.
Ramirez and Oakley were asked to rate the state of health care in America and to share their feelings about the Affordable Care Act. They also were asked to opine on the concept of a single, government-run, national health insurance program, often called Medicare for All.
Ramirez, a former state lawmaker first elected to Congress in 2022, said she’s deeply concerned about health care here, noting that it’s connected to other problems including affordability and worsening mental health issues. She alleged people are denied preventive and emergency care while insurance companies and industry corporations report “record profits.”
While noting that the Affordable Care Act gave more people access to medical care, Ramirez — one of the more progressive members of Congress and a member of the far-left group called the Squad — said she would prefer universal health care through Medicare for All.
“Health care should be a human right guaranteed to all,” Ramirez said.
Oakley, a former Winfield trustee who owns a marketing and communications firm, said expanding the Affordable Care Act or creating a Medicare for All system would address gaps in insurance coverage but wouldn’t solve the issue. Likewise, she said market competition and transparency can reduce costs but don’t do anything for a person who’s suffering a heart attack and can’t research care options.
Solutions, Oakley said, would include guaranteeing emergency and catastrophic health care for all Americans, tort reform and restructuring the health care market to be competitive.
“This is intellectually honest, fiscally grounded, ethically centered and practically superior to the prevailing narratives,” said Oakley, who has campaigned as a moderate Republican.
Making America healthy again should be more than a partisan slogan, Oakley said.
“The system will not be sustainable until Americans get healthier, which requires confronting the food industry, the chemical industry, the pharmaceutical industry and 50 years of subsidized bad nutrition science,” she said.
The 3rd District includes parts of suburban Cook and DuPage counties as well as neighborhoods on Chicago’s Northwest Side and North Side. Ramirez and Oakley each ran unopposed for their parties’ nominations in March.
Election Day is Nov. 3. Early voting has begun.
rlissau@dailyherald.com