Guy Meilleur, 76, is an arborist who moved to Wake County in 1985 to study at N.C. State University under J.C. Raulston, a renowned horticulturist. Meilleur ran unsuccessfully for a state House district in 2022 and the same congressional seat in 2024 that he’s now seeking. He lives in Durham.
Candidate Q&A
NC Health News reached out to Meilleur by phone and his campaign email multiple times seeking responses to the questions below but received no response. To provide information to readers, we have included information from his 2026 campaign website and from responses in Indy Week 2022 and 2026 questionnaires and the 2024 NC Health News voters guide.
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?
This response on Meilleur’s campaign website does not directly answer the question but this plank in his public platform offers some insight.
In his call for “real, practical, effective solutions for healthcare policy,” Meilleur suggests transitioning “the current Medicaid direct payment model to a state-funded health savings account, giving people more flexibility in defining the healthcare options that best serve their individual circumstances.”
This was provided to Indy Week in response to a question about federal Medicaid cuts “Federal benefits to North Carolina citizens have been chainsawed, when a chisel was needed. We need to rigorously fact-check the database, and then restore benefits. AI must not decide on actions without human direction.“
What would be your plan for ensuring the future security/strength of Social Security and Medicare?
This was provided to Indy Week in response to the question about Medicaid cuts: “Federal benefits to North Carolina citizens have been chainsawed, when a chisel was needed. We need to rigorously fact-check the database, and then restore benefits. AI must not decide on actions without human direction.“
What would you support in Congress as a plan to help control health care/ pharmaceutical costs?
From Meilleur’s campaign website: “Healthcare policy that removes the patient from the center of the decision-making process introduces incentives that do not align with the goals of providing high quality, accessible., affordable care. For too long, politicians, bureaucrats and special interests have been making the decisions that should be made by the people and families whose lives are directly affected. But even when people can make decisions around health options, state law often stands in the way of healthcare providers offering innovative services.”
In addition to transitioning the Medicaid program to a state-funded health savings account, Meilleur also suggests eliminating Certificate of Need laws, eliminating state licensing roadblocks the hamper “innovative health care delivery options,” eliminating laws that mandate or prohibit “any type of healthcare, medication, vaccination, or medical care or treatment,” and decriminalizing medical cannabis.
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?
No response available.
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?
This was part of his response to a question about federal Medicaid cuts in the Indy Week questionnaire: “AI must not decide on actions without human direction.”
Where do you stand on federal vaccine policy? What should be done to prevent future disease outbreaks?
This was a plank in his campaign platform for healthcare on his website: “Repeal laws and regulations that mandate or prohibit any type of healthcare, medication, vaccination, or medical care or treatment.”
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?
No response provided.
PFAS contamination is a nationwide issue; how do you address it while balancing public safety and business interests?
This response to a question about climate change was in an Indy Week 2022 candidate questionnaire when Meilleur was a candidate for District 30 in the state House of Representatives.
“State regulation should prevent or punish large scale water pollution, whether it be from coal ash or hog waste flowing into our rivers. These industries are in bed with the regulators, and they get away with a slap on the wrist. The rights of downstream citizens and property owners should be enforced by severe penalties and prompt action when our waterways are polluted.
One look at our mountains can tell you that large scale long-distance air pollution is damaging as well. Many trees have died along the Smokies as a result of pollution from Tennessee. Some court cases have been successful and won short term gains. Overwhelmingly we are just victims of whatever people want to do upwind or upstream of us.”
The building and placement of data centers have become big issues, particularly in many rural communities. What should be the federal government’s role, if any, in how these are developed?
No response available.
Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?
No response available.
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