Deborah Ross, an attorney and former state legislator, has represented the Raleigh-area district since 2021. She previously led the ACLU of North Carolina and practiced law.
Candidate Q&A
What do you see as the biggest financial and administrative challenge to implementing the work requirements for Medicaid that were included in the One Big Beautiful Bill?
Work requirements are counter-productive and harm working people and their children. Independent, nonpartisan studies have consistently shown that these arbitrary restrictions lead to the loss of coverage without increasing employment.
We know that when Americans can afford to get preventative care regularly, they are less likely to show up at emergency rooms or delay care until their conditions are more serious and costly.
The bottom line is we should be making it easier – not harder – for all North Carolinians, including children, to access the care they need. This work requirement puts a greater strain on the state to implement a new system to check individuals employment status.
What would be your plan for ensuring the future security/strength of Social Security and Medicare?
I am committed to protecting and strengthening Medicare and Social Security for our seniors and for future generations of Americans.
I was proud to support the Inflation Reduction Act, which will take significant steps to lower the high cost of prescription drugs for older Americans, including by capping out-of-pocket costs for life-saving medications under Part D. I also support expanding coverage under Medicare to include essential services like vision, hearing, and dental care.
In Congress, I’m working to strengthen Social Security and will strenuously oppose any attempt to turn Medicare into a voucher program. I also support lowering the Medicare eligibility age from 65 to 60.
What would you support in Congress as a plan to help control health care/ pharmaceutical costs?
I strongly support North Carolina’s groundbreaking plan to incentivize hospitals to forgive medical debt.
We desperately need to reign-in Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs). These pharmaceutical middlemen are engaging in predatory practices, forcing seniors to pay more for their prescription drugs while PBMs pocket the profits.
I’ve worked on a series of bipartisan bills to reform PBMs and protect patients, including the PBM Reform Act, portions of which passed into law last year. I also support the Federal Trade Commission’s ongoing investigation of these companies for antitrust abuses.
What steps would you take to improve access to health care in rural areas? How do we make the Rural Health Transformation Program successful in North Carolina?
While Medicaid expansion in our state has made a real difference for rural hospitals by significantly reducing uncompensated care, there is far more that Congress should be doing to ensure that these facilities can keep their doors open and continue to serve patients.
I have cosponsored a series of bills to incentivize doctors to work in rural areas. For example, the SPARC Act, would provide significant student loan repayment assistance to specialty doctors who choose to work at these hospitals. In addition, I support expanding access to visas for foreign medical professionals who can fill key vacancies in rural America.
The rollout of AI is moving fast, including in health care, and leaders in that space are calling for things to slow down. What federal moves should be taken to regulate it, if at all?
I believe that the federal government needs to support bipartisan measures to regulate AI. AI has great potential to drive medical research and scientific breakthroughs but we also need safeguards in place. I introduced the Secure AI Act which is bipartisan bicameral legislation that would give the federal government a dedicated AI Security Center under the NSA and create a confidential database to track safety and security threats. This will help the private sector and academic researchers, develop guidance to prevent or mitigate counter-AI techniques, and promote secure AI adoption.
Where do you stand on federal vaccine policy? What should be done to prevent future disease outbreaks?
I served on the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, and strongly believe that federal vaccine policy should prioritize science over political influence and the federal government should not limit vaccine availability. I believe that the federal government needs to fully fund scientific research to prevent future disease outbreaks. We can not let political disinformation shape healthcare policy.
We’ve had some high-profile food contamination outbreaks, yet the federal government is pulling back on regulation of food, air and water. What level of federal regulation do you support and why?
I support strong federal regulation of food, air, and water to save lives. I have introduced legislation like the Federal and State Food Safety Information Sharing Act to improve federal and state coordination in inspections and I remain focused on regulating PFAS and other forever chemicals.
PFAS contamination is a nationwide issue; how do you address it while balancing public safety and business interests?
I have worked across party lines to protect North Carolinians from PFAS exposure, including by supporting a new EPA reporting rule that will give policymakers a better understanding of the extent and effects of PFAS contamination.
I continue to work with EPA, NC DEQ, public water utilities, and industry to implement a science-based approach to this challenge. Among other steps, I believe the federal government should play a role in supporting the development of PFAS-free alternatives that could be used in manufacturing, firefighting, and other industries.
The building and placement of data centers have become a big issue, particularly in many rural communities. What should be the federal government’s role, if any, in how these are developed?
Data centers put strain on local communities through high utility bills, large water usage, and other environmental impacts. I do not support the federal government giving tax breaks or financial incentives to build data centers. I recently joined my colleagues in introducing legislation that would reverse the Big Ugly Law’s tax breaks for data centers.
We must ensure that no data center is built without local input, transparency, and protections for consumers against utility rate hikes.
Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?
I strongly oppose limits on a woman’s ability to access abortion care or any other form of reproductive health care. These decisions should always be left to women and their doctors.
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