An American government class had its final candidate running for the 5th Congressional District come in to speak. Republican candidate Lisa Wilson-Foley from Simsbury spoke to Adjunct Instructor Scott Benjamin’s class about her economic program among other issues on Thursday, Dec. 1.
Lisa Wilson-Foley ran for lieutenant government in 2010. Early on, she had little interest in politic science and went to school for physical therapy. She ended up getting her Master’s in public health after studying health care for many years. Health care is now something she feels she has extensive knowledge of and experience with.
“We need people in Washington that know health care,” she said. Wilson-Foley has started her own health care business with 500 employees and 50 people employed at her institutional pharmacy. This is just one of several businesses she owns. She feels that the health reform was too much too soon with a lot of people able to opt out of it or voting without even knowing the effects.
Waste in the budget is an issue of major concern to Wilson-Foley. “I know about reducing spending, efficiencies, and accountability.” She went on to say, “People in Washington lose sight of how much money they’re dealing with and waste it on programs that aren’t needed.”
A balanced budget is what Wilson-Foley would like to accomplish. “The government shouldn’t spend more than it makes,” she said. She feels that having a balanced budget within the next five years would be moving in the right direction and will give people more confidence in government.
“There’s less money and more red tape to treat one patient with a lower quality of care.” Wilson-Foley plans on repealing or at least reforming the current health care reform bill. “Quality, access, and cost of care have to be balanced,” said Wilson-Foley. She believes we need to stop spending money on unnecessary medical tests and bring competition in. She would like to have procedures that have poor results eliminated in a much quicker process.
“We’re losing the American dream by over-regulating and over-spending,” she said. For social security she feels there should be no more borrowing for other purposes from “the pot.” She would like the age to be extended to 65-70.
Other initiatives she plans on working towards are reducing regulation on bank loans, using a variety of energy resources, and making health insurance not dependent on one’s job so that people have the same insurance for life. Lastly, she would like to “shine her light on jobs.” As an owner of several businesses she is constantly focusing on jobs. She would like to make it easier for young adults and the elderly to be self reliant along with introducing incentives so that people are hired over machines.
Wilson-Foley would like to see Americans feel united again and restore the American dream. The class seemed to gain insights from her proposed ideas but at the same time had critical questions to ask about her proposals. “We have to make hard decisions to tighten our belts and get the fat out of the system,” said Wilson-Foley.
- Marissa Feign
Contributing Writer
