A Profile of Lauren Underwood
Science in Government
By: Alexandria Westray
In the past ten years, only three percent of the proposed legislation regarding health and environmental issues was enacted. On top of this, many leaders in government glaze over science-related policies, so important laws are rarely ratified, despite ample objective evidence. To combat this, some scientists have decided to take their experience and education to the Capitol Building. Lauren Underwood is one of eight representatives who were recently elected in 2018, making her a pioneer of STEM in government.
Lauren Underwood represents the 14th Congressional District of Illinois. She is a registered nurse, with degrees in nursing and healthcare policy. Early in her career, she was Senior Director of Strategy and Regulatory Affairs at Next Level Health. In 2014, she was appointed by President Obama to be the Senior Advisor at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where she worked on national responses to public health emergencies such as 2014’s chemical release in West Virginia and Hurricane Matthew. During this time, she had a major role in the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Underwood is also an adjunct professor at Georgetown University.
Underwood’s background in nursing led her to view many issues as problems that affect human health, saying that “Our policy-making must be guided by science. It’s the job of a public servant to work with scientists to identify effective public policy solutions.” As a scientist, Underwood understands how problems, such as the gun violence epidemic, are “critical public health issues,” which need to be addressed to protect human lives. A focus of her campaign was the environment. In a speech, Underwood said “I’m a nurse — I know that environmental issues are public health issues. When our air, water and land are polluted, people get sick.” Her work in the medical field gave her experience to examine policies through their relationship to public health as a representative. In her campaign, she promised that her background in science would help her work on women’s health rights, funding for the EPA, and reforming the Clean Air and Water Acts, among others.
So far in her term, Underwood has made strides in many of the issues she promised voters. Her projects related to climate change reflect the stance she ran on in 2018: that climate change directly affects human health. In July, she sponsored the Climate and Health Protection Act, which would give necessary funds for the Climate and Health Program to research health threats related to climate change in the United States. In her introduction of the bill, she said: “We cannot ignore the serious environmental, economic, and public health risks that pose a grave threat to all of us...It is essential that Congress continues to address emerging health threats brought on by climate change.”
Underwood has also sponsored eight bills relating to healthcare, another focus of her campaign. Three of these focus on reasonably-priced healthcare: H.R.1868 (Health Care Affordability Act of 2019), H.R.4457 (Chronic Condition Copay Elimination Act), and H.R.1010 (legislation to protect healthcare for pre-existing conditions). H.R.1010 successfully passed the House of Representatives, and as of 2019 has to pass the Senate before becoming law.
Underwood’s work on H.R.1010 signifies her commitment to the promises she made when she announced her bid for office. She ran as a result of learning that her representative at the time had voted to reduce support for people with preexisting conditions. This led Underwood to campaign on the fact that her experience as a nurse and as a person with a preexisting condition prepared her to represent people fairly, with a mixture of empathy and experience. So far, she has delivered on her promises, and there is great hope for her future in Congress.
As students, we can look to Underwood as a role model. She exemplifies Non Sibi, using her extensive background in science not for her personal gain or more money, but to fight for the environment, veterans, and people across the nation. Underwood’s commitment to using an interdisciplinary approach to government truly shows how science can change America, and is an inspiration to use our education for good.