Three words stretch across the front page of Richard Pan’s campaign website: “Public Health Hero”.
asserted
words → stretch → website
The California paediatrician is part of a wave of public health professionals angling for a seat in the United States Congress in Tuesday's midterm elections.
asserted
paediatrician → angle → elections
The American College of Gastroenterology has estimated that as many as 25 physicians could win congressional office this election cycle, a record number that would usher in "a new generation of physician-lawmakers".
uncertain
that → estimate → lawmakers
But while many of the incumbents are Republicans, experts say there has been a notable rise in the number of Democratic doctors and healthcare workers on the ballot.
asserted
experts → say → ballot
Some are competing in the highest-profile races of the year.
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Some → compete → year
Abdul El-Sayed, a physician and former public health official, is locked in a close race for Michigan's open Senate seat.
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Sayed → lock → seat
In South Carolina, meanwhile, paediatrician Annie Andrews has turned what would normally be a safe Senate seat for Republicans into a battleground.
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what → turn → battleground
Experts and advocacy groups credit the growing number of Democratic doctors-turned-politicians, in part, to frustration with Republican President Donald Trump.
asserted
Experts → credit → Trump
Democrats, they say, are tapping into public rage not only over rising healthcare costs but also Trump-era policies they see as anti-scientific.
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they → say → costs
“Scientists themselves have woken up.
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Scientists → wake → ?
We cannot just abandon the public forum to all of this misinformation, disinformation,” said Eric Feigl-Ding, an epidemiologist who founded Vax PAC, a political advocacy group that backs candidates who support responsible vaccine policies.
asserted
who → abandon → policies
Feigl-Ding sees the surge in political participation not as an act of partisanship but rather as a chance to advocate for responsible healthcare policies.
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Ding → see → policies
“It's not like public health is rolling up our sleeves and getting dirty in the pigsty,” Feigl-Ding said.
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Ding → roll → pigsty
“What public health is doing is immunising ourselves against politics.”
asserted
doing → do → politics
While the pocketbook issues consistently rank as the top priority for American voters, healthcare remains a prevailing concern.
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healthcare → rank → voters
A Pew Research Center poll on October 8 identified healthcare as the third most important election issue for Americans, behind the economy and the future of US democracy.
asserted
poll → identify → democracy
Democrats, in particular, were more likely to rank healthcare high among the factors swaying their votes.
asserted
Democrats → rank → votes
Eighty-two percent said it was a very important issue, compared with 53 percent for Republicans.
asserted
it → say → Republicans
The politicisation of healthcare isn’t new, but it has evolved, according to Matt Motta, a policy expert at Boston University’s School of Public Health.
uncertain
it → evolve → Health
He describes the issue as more divisive than it has been in the past.
asserted
it → describe → past
“Health has always been political, but health hasn’t always been partisan,” Motta told Al Jazeera.
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Motta → tell → Jazeera
"Our health has become increasingly polarised along partisan lines."
asserted
health → become → lines
One of the early instances of that fracture came in the 1994 midterm election cycle.
asserted
One → come → cycle
In the year leading up to the race, the administration of Democratic President Bill Clinton had pushed Congress for healthcare reform.
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administration → lead → reform
But Republicans like Representative Newt Gingrich framed that effort as "socialism".
asserted
Republicans → frame → socialism
The right-wing party ultimately flipped both chambers of Congress that year, in a midterm race dubbed the "Republican Revolution".
asserted
party → flip → race
Ever since, healthcare has played a defining role in nearly every midterm following the election of a new president, according to Motta.
uncertain
healthcare → play → Motta
During the 2010 midterms, for instance, Republicans ran in opposition to the newly passed Affordable Care Act.
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Republicans → run → Act
Then, in the 2018 midterms, after Trump's first election, Democrats campaigned against his efforts to roll the Affordable Care Act back.
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Democrats → campaign → Act
Later, in the 2022 race, restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic gave Republicans fuel to attack a new Democratic leader, then-President Joe Biden.
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restrictions → relate → leader
The news agency Reuters and the research firm Ipsos found in late October that his approval rating has slumped to a record low of 31 percent.
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rating → find → percent
As a candidate for the presidency in 2024, Trump had courted voters sceptical of the American healthcare system.
asserted
Trump → court → system
Trump tapped into that trend by recruiting vaccine sceptic Robert F Kennedy Jr to join his campaign.
asserted
Trump → tap → campaign
Kennedy rallied supporters under the banner "Make America Healthy Again" or "MAHA" — a variation on Trump's "Make America Great Again" slogan.
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America → rally → slogan
In turn, Trump promised to let Kennedy "go wild on health" if he were returned to office.
asserted
he → promise → office
Shortly after his re-election, Trump announced Kennedy as his pick for health and human services secretary.
asserted
Trump → announce → secretary
Since the start of Trump's second term, Kennedy has pushed to minimise federal vaccine guidelines, bucking scientific consensus.
He has also championed cuts to agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
asserted
He → push → Health
Trump, meanwhile, rallied Republicans to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill Act last year, which resulted in more than $1 trillion in cuts to healthcare spending.
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which → rally → spending
As part of that bill, Republicans allowed health insurance subsidies to expire, resulting in higher premiums for millions of Americans.
asserted
subsidies → allow → Americans
The new crop of Democratic doctors-turned-candidates is “trying to capitalise on how frustrated most people are with these decisions", Motta said.
asserted
Motta → turn → decisions
…and 35 more, not listed.
The Aporia
