
Republican Ellen Campbell, in announcing her candidacy for re-election to the 36th House District seat in the Virginia House of Delegates on Monday, seemed to me to be trying to sound like a Democrat.
The press release from her office announcing her intent to seek re-election went out of its way to tout her work on healthcare, mental health and early childhood education.
Interesting, that.
Let’s start with healthcare, which needs to be a top priority for lawmakers going forward.
Campbell serves on a House of Delegates committee charged with studying rural and small-town healthcare, and she said the committee’s findings “have revealed several persistent barriers, including limited access to care, transportation issues, shortages of doctors and nurses, and complications related to insurance, particularly Medicaid reimbursement rates.”
“Addressing these obstacles, especially in rural areas, remains a top priority for me in the legislature,” said Campbell, an Augusta County native who was first elected to the General Assembly in a 2023 special election held following the death of her husband, Ronnie Campbell, who had succeeded Ben Cline in the House seat after winning a special election in 2018.
Campbell, in the healthcare realm, is backing a bipartisan effort to establish a Prescription Drug Affordability Board being led by Fairfax Democrat Karrie Delaney, whose legislation that passed in the 2024 General Assembly session was vetoed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican.
The legislation would create an independent board of medical and health experts that would set payment limits on drug prices within state-sponsored health plans.
The mealy-mouthed Youngkin criticized the idea, in his veto statement, as something that would “limit access to treatments and hinder medical innovation,” disguising what Republicans really don’t like about it – it cuts profit margins for their buddies in Big Pharma.
It’s notable that Campbell is willing to buck party leadership on this, which has put her on the same side of the issue as the left-leaning advocacy group Freedom Virginia and Virginia AARP.
Campbell said in a virtual press conference held last week to promote the legislation that “when you’re facing critical illnesses, you should not have to make those tough decisions.”
“I think it’s time for us to try something new, and I’ve been really happy to support this legislation,” Campbell said.
The campaign press release issued on Monday also highlighted her interest in addressing the way we currently deal with mental health by placing an undue burden on local law enforcement through Temporary Detention Orders and Emergency Custody Orders.
“In many cases, officers are required to remain with patients for extended periods of time, sometimes days, as they await appropriate placement. I’m committed to advancing legislation that will ease the burden on them, ensuring our constituents receive the care they need, while keeping our communities safe,” Campbell said.
One other area where Campbell seems to buck the party line is in early childhood education.
Here we can actually give credit to Youngkin as well. The governor worked with Democrats last year to invest more than $900 million in the Early Child Care and Education program.
This was a welcome development, and a departure from Republican orthodoxy, which has tended to use public K-12 education as a political football to foster divisiveness over dubious claims about critical race theory and sex-change operations.
“I supported the governor’s historic investments in ECCE because I understand the profound impact early childhood care has on both our children’s future and Virginia’s workforce. I will continue to advocate for the ECCE program and fight for policies that prioritize the well-being and success of our children,” Campbell said.