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MAHA has inspired a wave of medical professionals to run for office 25%
By Elizabeth Maline0%
6/9/2026, 7:57:08 AM
Topics: Public Health Policy, Political Campaigns, Healthcare Funding, Medical Professionals In Politics
Keywords: Maha, Medical Professionals, Politics, Public Health, Funding Cuts, Vaccination, Disease Prevention, Nirav Shah, Amy Acton, Jasmine Clark, Abdul El Sayed, 314 Action Fund, Richard Pan, Robert F Kennedy Jr, Affordable Care Act, Bill Cassidy, Ada Cuellar, Elissa Slotkin, Andy Kim, Abigail Spanberger, Mikie Sherrill
BS Summary: This article contains 28 faulty reasoning types, including Negativity Bias, Confirmation Bias, and Framing Effect, with Hasty Generalization as the most egregious example at 24.8% saturation with 160 hits. Analysis detected 1,315 faulty-reasoning hits from 645 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 37.4% and a BS Rank of 25% (16,437 of 21,887 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 75.10% of the article peer group.
President Donald Trump’s first term sent a wave of national security professionals into politics.
His second term is doing the same for public health experts.
Across the country, doctors, scientists and public health officials are running for state and federal office, citing their frustrations with cuts to public health funding, diminished support for vaccination and disease prevention, and the sidelining of experts in public health.
Among the most prominent is Dr.
Nirav Shah, who was head of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention during the coronavirus pandemic.
He is considered the front-runner in a competitive Democratic primary for Maine governor on Tuesday.
Other candidates include Dr.
Amy Acton, a pediatric physician and researcher who is the Democratic gubernatorial nominee in Ohio, and Jasmine Clark, who is poised to become the first Black woman Ph.D. scientist in Congress after securing the Democratic nomination for Georgia’s 13th District.
In Michigan, Dr.
Abdul El-Sayed, a former public health official, is currently ahead in the polls for the Democratic Senate primary in August.
They are part of a broader wave of scientists getting involved in politics.
The 314 Action Fund, a political action committee dedicated to recruiting and electing Democratic STEM professionals, has committed more money than ever before to the 2026 primary cycle.
Doctors are nothing new in politics, of course.
There are already 20 physicians serving in Congress, including four senators.
But the current group of elected officials is disproportionately Republican, while the new wave of candidates is centered in Democratic primaries.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F.
Kennedy Jr.’s deep cuts to staff at federal health agencies and controversial changes to vaccine policy seem to have inspired a number of the candidates.
But on the campaign trail, they are much more likely to talk about Trump allowing expanded subsidies for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act to expire than on public health policy.
Dr.
Richard Pan, a pediatrician running for Congress in California, gave a typical statement in a social media post last week.
“People in the district are struggling as the cost of gas, food, and housing spike and health care is being taken away by the Trump Administration,” he wrote.
Just 4 in 10 U.S. adults say they support the Make America Healthy Again movement championed by Kennedy, according to polling last month from health policy organization KFF.
But when asked to choose the most important health priority for the federal government, 42% of MAHA backers chose lowering healthcare costs, twice as many as the next agenda item, restricting chemical additives to food.
Once in office, medical professionals will sometimes cite their expertise when trying to win a political argument, but there are limits.
Republican Sen.
Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a gastroenterologist, led the effort against Kennedy’s nomination in 2025 before reluctantly voting for him.
Last month he lost a Republican primary for re-election after Trump endorsed his opponent.
A focus on costs also helps candidates stay focused on the economy.
Only 2% of voters say healthcare is the most important issue in the election, according to a May poll by Gallup, well below the economy and immigration.
Like any other group of political newcomers, healthcare professionals have also faced setbacks.
In Texas, emergency room physician Dr.
Ada Cuellar lost a Democratic congressional primary to a Tejano music star.
But these kinds of waves can have a long-term impact.
Among the class of national security pros who won in 2018 were future senators Elissa Slotkin and Andy Kim and future governors Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill.
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Analysis
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