Background & Education

I was elected to the Arizona House to serve Legislative District 9 in 2016, and in 2020, I am running for my third term.

As a member of the Ways and Means Committee, I am a strong opponent of corporate tax giveaways and the only person in the Arizona House who voted against every one of them in my four years of service. I want to bring fiscal responsibility to the Arizona budget. I believe the Arizona Legislature should fund the People’s To-Do List — education, healthcare, infrastructure, and safety and security — and not the corporate wish list.

As a four-year member of the House Health Committee, I fought for reproductive rights, science-based medicine, workers compensation, expanded maternal and child healthcare, fair insurance practices, and expanded eligibility for Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS/Medicaid), Temporary Assistance to the Needy Families (TANF), and childcare subsidies.

I grew up in the small Midwestern town of Amherst, Ohio, on the banks of Lake Erie, and moved to Tucson in 1981. I have a bachelors degree in journalism from The Ohio State University (1973) and a masters in public health from The University of Arizona (UA, 1996).

For most of my career, I worked in public relations and corporate communication. For several years, I had my own small business as a freelance writer, photographer, and graphic designer. While working in the communication office of the Arizona Cancer Center at the UA, I started writing cancer prevention materials; this sparked my interest in public health, behavioral medicine, and prevention. After earning an MPH, my career shifted to prevention research and public health program management. I worked on several cancer prevention research projects including Five a Day for Better Health, Family Sun Safety, and smoking uptake by adolescents. I also was the program director for the Arizona Smokers Helpline and related Internet and evaluation services in the UA College of Public Health.

From 2004 to 2016, I was managing editor for the American Journal of Medicine, one of the world’s top internal medicine journals. In January 2016, I stepped down as managing editor to run for office, and I became the Journal’s part-time social media/technology editor and occasional author. Working part time gives me the flexibility to serve in the Arizona House. In 2020, I am running for her third term.

To learn about my proposals and where I stand on the issues, check out the Issues tab and the Get Updates tab. Here are a few links detailing my ideas.

I do daily video updates from the Capital during session and frequent updates when the Legislature is not in session. To view all of the updates for 2020, go here. You can follow my blog on this website for updates, news, and events. You can also subscribe to my e-newsletter by clicking here.

To learn more about my record and activities in the House, click on the News page or the Endorsements & Honors page.

To join my team, volunteer, or to get regular updates, go to: Join My Team

You can follow me on social media here …