Q&A: Rep. Jacquelin Maycumber discusses health policy priorities for 2022 –

Representative Jacquelin Maycumber has served Washington’s 7th Legislative District —  which includes Ferry, Pend Oreille, and Stevens Counties, and parts of Okanogan and Spokane Counties — since 2017. Maycumber serves on the House Health Care and Wellness Committee.

In this Q&A, Maycumber discusses health care initiatives she looks forward to implementing and advocating for, as well as her health policy priorities for the upcoming legislative session.

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Soraya Marashi: What are your health care related priorities for the upcoming legislative session?

Rep. Jacquelin Maycumber: “My insulin bill that passed a couple years ago had a prescription drug task force … to really review some of those life saving medications, [which]costs have increased around 500 to 800% in the last few years … That task force will be implemented this year, so I really look forward to that … 

Also really looking at continuity of care has been a priority of mine — making sure people continue to get the preventative health care that they need. But also having access to primary care has really been a huge deal in my district and throughout the state.”

SM: What health care related issues have you been working on in the interim?

Rep. Maycumber: “Mostly continuity of care. With the governor’s shutdown, we saw a lot of people really put their health care on the back burner, or [they] were not able to continue the health care needs that they had [prior to the pandemic] – not just preventative care, but [an] ongoing process. So, making sure people had access, that they continued with their care, and that they were able to start back up … Physicians and a lot of providers had a difficult time with that bottleneck … so making sure people were able to get in and get a lot of their care needs taken care of. And then, as we move forward, we really need to see that we start working on those checkups that really stopped those major [health] issues early, that people are able to get back into that cycle of seeing their primary care providers.”

SM: The deadline for Inslee’s vaccine mandate is rapidly approaching – do you feel that this is important to public health and safety in our state, and what has been the consensus from the workers in your constituency?

Rep. Maycumber: “I have concerns on who was making the mandate to begin with. I really think that maybe one public official should not be making this decision. I really think it should be at the hands of the physicians. I’ve heard from constituents who are currently in active chemotherapy and radiation for cancer care, who did not receive medical exemptions, and so will be losing their insurance because they’ll  be losing their jobs. So I really think that this should have been put in the hands of the providers, not the bureaucracy of the state … 

And I have a big concern — and I think a lot of people are feeling this and seeing this — with what happens to our workforce. What happens to our…