Healthcare Position Paper
The 7th Congressional District is home to more hospitals, community health centers and other health resources than any other district in the United States. Unfortunately, this district is also home to some of the widest health disparities in the country. The biggest death gap of any U.S. city is found in West Garfield Park. Residents are expected to live on average until 67 years old compared to Loop residents living to 87. Just seven stops on the Green Line Train and a 20-year life expectancy gap.
In Austin, Lawndale, Garfield Park, Humboldt Park and Englewood food and pharmacy deserts are widespread. One of the great crisis in healthcare is inequality and premature deaths based on zip code. The 7th Congressional District, with its healthcare assets, is home to Two Americas of Health and Healthcare Delivery. One system for those with money and another for the poor and uninsured.
Good health and nutrition are our basic rights, not privileges. The federal government must do more to improve the health and nutrition of all Americans. As your Congressman, I will fight to improve access to quality healthcare and nutrition for all. My priorities include:
· Restoring equity and funding for federal health care programs serving vulnerable populations
· Expanding the number of Federally Qualified Community Health Centers
· Increasing minority representation in biomedical workforce
· Ending food deserts
· Lowering the cost of food
· Supporting vaccines, and
· Reducing harm caused by controlled substances, including cannabis
Priority 1 - Restoring equity and funding for federal health care programs serving vulnerable populations
In an unconscionable act of social injustice, the Trump Administration shredded the safety net for vulnerable populations by cutting benefits to fund $4.5 trillion in taxes for the wealthiest Americans. In 2025, the Trump Administration ended subsidies for disadvantaged Americans to afford insurance premiums, cut billions of dollars in funding for health care programs, including minority health care initiatives, and weakened infectious disease control and vaccine programs.
· On December 31, 2025, the U.S. Congress and the President let Affordable Care Act subsidies expire. As a result, more than half a million residents of Illinois may lose access to high quality medical care because they cannot afford the rising costs of insurance premiums for health care.[1] This is unjust.
· Medicaid funding was cut by an estimated $1 trillion over 10 years, which will result in 11.4 million people losing health insurance coverage by the year 2034.[2] This is unjust.
· Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) was cut by $230 billion, which will result in twenty-two million Americans losing benefits, with monthly family benefits shrinking by up to $146 per month or $1,752 annually.[3] This is unjust.
· Research grants to the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities were cut by $223 million.[4] This is unjust.
As your Congressman, I will fight to restore subsidies for health insurance premiums, Medicaid, SNAP, and other benefits and make the wealthy pay their fair share. Also, I will restore funding to the Office of Minority Health, which is tasked with reducing health disparities, to the NIH for research on various diseases, to the FDA to hire more food inspectors, and to CDC to help prepare us for the next pandemic.
Priority 2 - Expanding the number of Federally Qualified Community Health Centers
In 1965, the federal government set up the Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) program to provide medical care to underserved populations. The centers provide community residents with access to neighborhood doctors, primary care, behavioral health and dental care. They have a long record of helping to prevent disease and death in underserved communities with limited resources. In addition, they stabilize communities through employment and respond to emerging health care delivery trends, such as tele-medicine. FQHCs receive federal funding and are often run as non-profit organizations. They must meet stringent federal quality standards and must provide services to all patients regardless of ability to pay.
FQHCs are the largest primary care network in the nation. They serve nearly 1 in 10 people, and 1 in 5 Medicaid recipients.[5] In Chicago and surrounding areas, there are 167 FQHCs, ranging from small private homes to large care communities.[6]
FQHCs have been a notable success in providing healthcare and wrap-around services to underserved communities. As your Congressman, I will work to increase the number of FQHCs in the 7th Congressional District and surrounding communities. It is the right thing to do.
Priority 3 – Increasing minority representation in biomedical workforce
In August 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ended a long-standing program to help diversify the biomedical workforce.[7] This is unjust. As Congressman, I will work to restore all federal efforts to increase minority representation in the biomedical workforce.
Priority 4 – Eliminating food deserts
The rising tide of wealth has failed to lift all boats. How can Americans flourish when large groups of people are in poverty and ill-fed? Regrettably, communities in Illinois suffer from a lack of available nutritious food. In Cook County, 382 out of 1,319 (28.9%) census tracts qualify as food deserts,[8] which “means a location lacking fresh fruit, vegetables, and other healthful whole foods, in part due to a lack of grocery stores, farmers' markets, or healthy food providers.”[9] This is unacceptable and unjust.
The private grocery industry is not working for these communities because the profit margin is on average 1.6%.[10] Because profit margins are low, private, for-profit companies choose not to sustain a presence in low-income communities in Chicago and Cook County. This is unacceptable because the people who live in these communities suffer from a lack of available, nutritious food.
As your Congressman, I will work with state and local leaders to build a national strategy for ending food deserts and food insecurity. The strategy will include, but is not limited to:
· Providing grants and tax credits for grocery stores supporting underserved areas
· Expanding food banks that provide healthy and nutritious food and ingredients to low-income families
· Increasing funding for SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program)
· Promoting members-supported public grocery stores in the hardest-hit food desert communities
· Working with nutrition related organizations and churches to provide training on healthy eating in communities with the highest levels of obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes
· Supporting policies that address social determinants of health, such as housing, food security, environmental justice and employment
Priority 5 – Lowering the cost of food
Recently, the price of food has increased due to inflation. Part of the reason for the rise in inflation is food waste. Waste occurs at all five stages of the food supply chain: production, handling and storage, processing, distribution and marketing and consumption.
Consumers are aware of how to shop for food. Before they go shopping, the consumer will check cupboards and refrigerator for supplies, estimate how much food they need for meals, and make a list before heading to the store. They may overbuy because retailers’ packaging is excessive and sale prices are too good to refuse.
Consumers discard unwanted food due to concerns about contamination and food-borne disease and a need to have the freshest products possible.[11] Some concerns are due to inconsistent definitions of commonly used labels, such as “use by” and “sell by” dates on products. What should consumers do and to whom should they turn for guidance? To address these concerns, the federal government needs to offer clearer food safety guidance for different types of food.
Food retailers and restaurants must reduce food waste and lower costs. Supermarkets and grocery stores can use more resealable packages, offer more variety in package sizes, and offer discount prices for food that are over-ripe or nearing expiration, yet can still be consumed. Also, restaurants can donate excess food, serve smaller portions and provide smaller salad bar plates.
As your Congressman, I will
· Sponsor legislation to require comprehensive safety and waste prevention measures by food type
· Work with food retailers and the restaurant industry to implement cost-effective, best nutrition practices
· Hold hearings in Congress to hold companies accountable for inflated prices and end food delivery monopolies
Priority 6 – Supporting vaccines
The Trump Administration cut or ended billions in funding for 2,500 research grants for vaccine development, chronic diseases, and global health.[12] This is unjust and foolish.
Vaccines save lives and improve the quality of life for all people. Think of the asthmatic child who is allergic to ragweed, grass, molds, dust, and other naturally occurring factors. Those factors can cause severe asthma attacks and can lead to sleep disruptions, higher rates of hospitalization and inability to take part in outdoor activities. In serious cases, a child may need a regime of allergy shots to manage their asthma and lead a more-or-less normal life. This is the benefit of vaccines.
We know vaccines work because scientists can predict that our bodies’ natural defenses will respond in a particular way to the introduction of antigens – and they do, repeatedly. And when we activate our natural defenses, we can beat back deadly and life-restricting viruses and let the asthmatic child enjoy the outdoors, allow parents to manage their households free from the flu, and prevent seniors from experiencing the pain of shingles. Vaccinations are the right thing to do.
It is simple – put science and health above politics. As your Congressman, I will work tirelessly with public health professionals to develop clear, effective, and prompt public health policies and messaging about vaccinations and invest in research that will bring forward new and effective vaccines.
Priority 7 - Reducing harm caused by cannabis
State and local governments have moved too quickly to legalize cannabis for recreational use. They have set up a legal market for cannabis without thinking about the effects of THC on the health of individuals and bystanders.
Recently, scientists published a comprehensive report that “Marijuana users have a 29 percent higher risk for heart attacks and a 20 percent higher stroke risk than their peers who don’t dabble with cannabis.”[13] This is troubling. Why are we allowing profit-seeking cannabis dispensaries to proliferate without mandating health warnings about the risks of cannabis consumption?
Non-smokers have the right to be free from exposure to cannabis smoke in public, including CTA and Metra commuter trains and buses.
The government must protect individuals and communities from substances such as cannabis, steroids, and opioids that can be abused and cause serious harm. As your Congressman, I will work with public health officials to warn consumers about the negative effects of cannabis consumption. Also, I will seek legislation to require mass transit systems that receive federal funds to certify that they are cannabis and cannabis-smoke free.
Conclusion
Good health and nutrition are basic rights, not privileges. I believe the best way to obtain these rights is by putting resources into combatting diseases, providing food security for all, and restricting access to dangerous substances. The priorities I have outlined are a foundation for building communities where access to healthcare is guaranteed, the spread of infectious diseases is stopped in their tracks, where no child or family is undernourished, and dangerous substances are controlled.
Let social justice roll down like water - make healthcare and nutrition a basic right for all Americans.
ENDNOTES
[1] Machi, Sari, Cook County hospitals brace for influx of uninsured patients with Affordable Care Act subsidies expiring, CBS, January 1, 2026. https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/cook-county-hospitals-uninsured-patients-affordable-care-act-subsidies
[2] Galewitz, Phil et al., Five Ways Trump’s Megabill Will Limit Healthcare Access, NPR, July 3, 2025, https://www.npr.org/sections
[3] Konish, Lorie, Trumps’ ‘big beautiful bill’ cuts Food Stamps for millions – the average family may lose $146 per month, report finds, CNBC, July 10, 2025, https://www.nbcchicago.com/news
[4] Palmer, Kathryn, Minority Health Grants Biggest Target of NIH Cuts, May 13, 2025, https://www.insidehighered.com/news/quick-takes/2025/05/13/minority-health-grants-biggest-target-nih-cuts
[5] UnitedHealthcare Community & State Role of Federally Qualified Health Centers in underserved communities, , https://www.uhccommunityandstate.com/content/articles/role-of-federally-qualified-health-centers-in-underserved-commun
[6] See https://carelistings.com/federally-qualified-health-centers/chicago-il
[7] Surina Venkat, Minority health researchers walk tightrope amid NIH funding cuts, The Hill, November 8, 2025
https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5592836-trump-administration-nih-funding-cuts
[8] Geocodio, Cook County, IL, Dotsquare LLC, accessed 6/30/25, https://www.geocod.io/
[9] Illinois Department of Public Health, Illinois Food Deserts Annual Report, July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024, p. 2, https://www.ilga.gov/
[10] FMI, Food Industry Association, Grocery Store Chains Net Profit, accessed 6/30/25, https://www.fmi.org/
[11] Neff, Roni A. et al., Wasted Food: U.S. Consumer’s Reported Awareness, Attitudes and Behaviors, June 10, 2015, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
[12] Hwang, Irena et al., The Disappearing Funds, New York Times, June 4, 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/interactive
[13] Physician’s Weekly, Researchers Quantify Magnitude of Cardiovascular Risk Associated with Cannabis, June 18, 2025, https://www.physiciansweekly.com/. See also Weaver, Emily, Marijuana Doubles Your Risk of Dying From Heart Disease—And Edibles May Not be Safer, Best Lie, June 25, 2025, https://bestlifeonline.com/
