Virginia Gubernatorial Candidates Tackle the Issues

In a state that has never elected a female governor, both major party gubernatorial candidates in the Tuesday, Nov. 4, election are women.

Republican Winsome Earle-Sears has spent nearly four years as Virginia’s lieutenant governor. A native of Jamaica, she served in the U.S. Marines Corps and in the state House of Delegates. Democrat Abigail Spanberger served three terms in Congress, representing Virginia’s 7th District. Before that, she worked as a CIA officer.

AARP (Courtesy Spanberger and Earle-Sears campaigns)

The Bulletin spoke with both candidates about issues important to older adults. Their answers were edited for clarity and brevity.

According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, nearly half of Virginia’s nursing homes are rated “below average” or “much below average” in terms of quality of care. How would you work to ensure nursing home providers are held to the highest standards of care?

SPANBERGER: I would work to strengthen our long-term care workforce, as workforce is a key element of stability and vital and strong care. And I will ensure that we are investing in our nursing workforce, so that facilities can be appropriately staffed. My administration would also work to make sure that home health care workers are paid a living wage.

EARLE-SEARS: Prior to our coming into office, the pay was not as it could have been, as it should have been, and as a consequence, people in the health care space, they went elsewhere for better careers, for better jobs.... Then number two, we’ve got to have better oversight on the care that’s being given.

Virginia’s 1 million family caregivers provide more than $14 billion a year in unpaid care to aging loved ones. How would you work to boost social and financial support for family caregivers?

EARLE-SEARS: It takes all of us to come together to ensure that no one is left behind and that the family caregivers don’t feel as if they don’t have support. So we need both Democrats and Republicans when we’re looking at the budget to understand that we’ve got to put the money where it’s absolutely, positively most needed.... We’ve got to find efficiencies. We’ve got to ask ourselves, “There are 10 programs doing the same thing. Do we need 10 programs? Who is doing it better? Maybe we can expand that particular program.”

SPANBERGER: I backed legislation that made it easier for family caregivers to access their loved ones’ personal health information ... [and] legislation that would also help improve care coordination between actual caregivers and health care providers.... I will work with the General Assembly to reduce the wait list for the Medicaid DD [developmental disability] waivers.... Also [important is the] overall strengthening of behavioral health and mental health services within Virginia, so that the loved ones who are providing that care are themselves also able to get the supports that they might need.

Two-thirds of older adults in the state rely on prescription medications. What steps would you take to curb costs and ensure older Virginians can access the medications they need?

SPANBERGER: In Congress, I was part of the effort to cap annual out-of-pocket drug costs for seniors on Medicare ... to cap insulin costs for seniors on Medicare ... and to allow for Medicare to negotiate some of its prescription drugs....

I recently laid out my health care affordability agenda ... of working to lower prescription drug costs by taking a variety of steps.... [That includes] cracking down on the middlemen—pharmacy benefit managers ... making sure that large pharmaceutical companies are accountable through pricing transparency laws; and enforcing penalties when there’s evidence of price gouging.

EARLE-SEARS: If the European countries can buy drugs at a much lower cost ... then certainly we have the ability to—or we should have the ability—to purchase them here.... In Florida, they had a policy where they were buying drugs from Canada, because you could purchase the drugs much cheaper there than you could here.... With my administration, we are going to absolutely get a foothold on making sure that drugs aren’t expensive, because it shouldn’t be that people are trying to figure out, do they pay for prescriptions this month, or do they pay their rent this month.

How would you work across party and political divisions on behalf of older Virginians?

EARLE-SEARS: We have to come and find a way to meet in the middle.... We’re not elected to continue to be at each other’s throats.... Yes, we have our political differences.... But ... we do want to help, we agree on that. Now let’s see how we can make that happen.... That’s why they hired us.

SPANBERGER: My experience, certainly as a member of Congress, in working to get things done, speaks to how effective I can be in building out coalitions.... I was ... ranked the most bipartisan member of the Virginia congressional delegation throughout my time in Congress.... The way that I approach issues is by trying to bring people together.

In 2019, Virginia expanded Medicaid health care coverage to more than 600,000 low-income adults. Under a state law, these individuals could lose their health coverage if federal funding decreases. If that happened, are there steps you would take to ensure they have access to medical care?

SPANBERGER: As governor, I would want to ensure that we are doing everything we can to bridge that gap.... Individuals might walk into a doctor’s office or the hospital without coverage, and that drives up costs for everyone. I want to ensure that we’re doing whatever we can to mitigate the risk of that and respond appropriately.

EARLE-SEARS: Well, of course, we don’t want anyone to lose their ability to have access to health care, because I would think health care, of course, is fundamental. It’s one of the things that’s necessary in the same way that we have the ability to have an education, shelter, food, all of that.... So we’re going to make sure that our seniors are taken care of, and anybody else who needs quality care will be taken care of. 

If elected, how do you plan to improve the lives of Virginians 50-plus?

EARLE-SEARS: Well, I think it’s not just a matter of improving the lives of those 50-plus. I think if we enact policies that are helpful to everyone, then everyone benefits. Everyone wants access to health care. Everyone wants access to a good education.

SPANBERGER: Every bit of work that I will be doing as governor, whether it’s working to lower energy costs or health care costs or housing costs, or whether it’s contending with behavioral health and mental health challenges, whether it’s supporting our veterans, whether it’s ensuring economic growth and development across all of our regions ... will have an impact on the lives of older Virginians. ■

Go to winsomeforgovernor.com and abigailspanberger.com to learn more.