“People are having to make choices about whether they keep their insurance or don’t.”
Democrat Elaine Luria on Sept. 23 held a wide-ranging discussion on how the affordability crisis is playing out across Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District as she unveiled a list of economic policies she’d support if Hampton Roads voters choose to send her back to Congress this fall.
The US Navy veteran and former member of Congress held a roundtable at the Sundae Scoop ice cream shop Wednesday morning in Virginia Beach. Luria heard from young people struggling with the cost of higher education, retirees trying to protect their savings against rising prices, and small business owners frustrated with the state of the economy.
Luria represented Virginia’s 2nd District from 2019 to 2023 before being ousted by Republican US Rep. Jen Kiggans, a fellow US Navy vet who has consistently supported Trump administration policies like cutting the social safety net and supporting the Iran war. Now, Luria is running to win her seat back in a competitive race that Fox News recently shifted from a toss-up to leaning Democratic.
As part of her pitch to voters, Luria touted an economic agenda that includes raising the federal minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $15 an hour and indexing it to inflation. Luria also supports a federal 12-week paid family and medical leave program and an $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers.
Luria criticized Kiggans for being a healthcare provider who ultimately supported allowing Affordable Care Act (ACA) health insurance subsidies to expire. Since then, the Virginia Mercury reported that there are 94,000 fewer Virginians enrolled in ACA health plans, and Democrats in the General Assembly have set aside millions to try to deal with the fallout of people losing their health insurance. State lawmakers earmarked $150 million in the state budget to create a temporary version of the expired assistance to help people between 138% and 250% of the federal poverty level, the Mercury reported.
Luria said people across Hampton Roads are seeing their monthly health insurance payments go up. One 2nd District voter said her health care premium had more than doubled, according to Luria.
“People are having to make choices about whether they keep their insurance or don’t,” Luria told reporters after the roundtable. “When people are uninsured they show up at the emergency room and everyone pays more.”
Philip Sibs, the owner of Sundae Scoop, said he’s struggling to manage the high cost of living while running a small business and raising two young kids. He said many of his employees are either in high school or pursuing higher education and are also struggling to keep up with the high cost of living.
“I think that one of the big issues with the affordability crisis that we’re coming through right now is the fact that capitalism is great for distributing things that people want, but it is horrible at distributing things that people need,” Sibs said. “It shouldn’t be a question of how much can you afford when it comes to going to school, because I have a medical student who goes to Deep Creek [High School] right now who can’t afford to go to medical school, but she’s smart enough to do so.”
Luria criticized Kiggans’ support for the Iran war, which has dragged on for nearly seven months, cost the lives of at least 19 American servicemembers, caused the deaths of Iranian civilians, and cost the American taxpayers billions.
Luria said if she’s voted back into office, she will work to hold the Trump administration accountable for the Iran war in a way that Republicans like Kiggans have not.
“Jen Kiggans, the Republican Congress, from the very onset of this, have not stood up and exerted the power of Congress and allowed the president to unilaterally start a war and have not had any accountability to the American people,” Luria said.
Luria said Kiggans is quietly refusing to hold a debate, but the Democrat is ready to meet her Republican opponent on stage.
“We’re ready to organize something,” Luria said.
