<p class="wp-block-paragraph"><strong>DES MOINES, Iowa —</strong> Iowa’s Democratic Senate nominee <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/congressional/4738778/iowa-senate-race-ashley-hinson-josh-turek/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Josh Turek</a> criticized Rep. <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/ashley-hinson" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ashley Hinson</a> (R-IA) during their first debate by highlighting Hinson’s involvement in passing <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/senate/4661555/big-beautiful-bill-medicaid-reforms-republican-pushback/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Republican cuts to Medicaid</a> spending through last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Turek emphasized multiple times during the debate that Hinson voted in favor of a $1 trillion reduction in spending for Medicaid, the partially federally funded health insurance program for low-income adults and children, as part of the legislative package of President <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/donald-trump/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Donald Trump</a>’s second term.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“She voted for 110,000 Iowans to lose their healthcare in a state with a cancer crisis and a healthcare crisis,” Turek stated.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Iowa is the only state in the country with a growing cancer diagnosis rate and ranks second, next to Kentucky, in the number of overall cancer cases. The <a href="https://shri.public-health.uiowa.edu/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/2026-Cancer-in-Iowa.pdf" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">University of Iowa</a> in March estimated that by the end of 2026 there will be 21,700 new cancer diagnoses in the state and 6,400 new cancer deaths.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Turek became a politician four years ago after a long career in assisting Medicaid patients in obtaining durable medical equipment, such as wheelchairs.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Turek himself is a permanent wheelchair user due to spina bifida, a genetic disorder he attributes to his father’s exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The Democratic candidate stated that the cuts from OBBBA will make it more difficult for patients dependent on the program to receive necessary care and supportive services.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“We have 27,000 disabled Iowans right now that are on Medicaid waitlists,” Turek noted. “When you make these cuts to Medicaid, it means less services, less support, and more closures.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Turek also mentioned that Iowa is “already basically dead last” in physician retention, particularly for specialists like mental health providers and OB-GYNs.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Hinson responded that the bill’s reductions to Medicaid spending for Iowa will be balanced by the Rural Health Transformation Program, which allocates $50 billion among all 50 states over the next five years. She also indicated that the majority of the savings will come from implementing work requirements for able-bodied adults on the program and removing eligibility for illegal immigrants.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“We want it to be there for our working poor people who have a little skin in the game,” Hinson said. “What we did was make sure that there are commonsense work requirements so that people who are gaming the system aren’t getting these benefits, and people who are illegal are not getting these benefits.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Regarding the state’s cancer crisis, Hinson defended her record by highlighting her efforts during her three terms in Congress to increase cancer research funding for the National Institutes of Health.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">She also mentioned introducing a bill that would direct funds from federal tobacco taxes to research for pediatric and rare cancers.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“We are trying to make sure we’re directing the resources exactly where they need to go, so we can better recruit providers and continue to provide the best care possible no matter what your ZIP code is,” Hinson stated.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph"><a href="https://www.kff.org/public-opinion/kff-ap-rural-voters-survey/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Two in 3 rural voters</a> who responded to an <em>Associated Press</em> poll in September expressed concern about affording healthcare expenses. This concern ranked higher than other financial strains such as food, utilities, and housing costs.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">A <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/10/04/polls/times-siena-iowa-poll-crosstabs.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>New York Times</em></a> poll of swing-state voters published on Oct. 3 found that 45% of likely Iowa voters believe the state is heading in the wrong direction.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Among those surveyed, Hinson held a 1-percentage-point lead over Turek, 48% to 47%, which is within the 5-point margin of error of the survey. Independents in the poll favored Turek, with 51% support compared to Hinson’s 38% support.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph"><a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/state/4758049/democratic-governor-nominee-rob-sand-bashes-trump-iowa-food-stamps-problems/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>DEMOCRATIC GOVERNOR NOMINEE ROB SAND BASHES TRUMP OVER IOWA’S FOOD STAMPS PROBLEMS</strong></a></p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Republican House candidates received a plurality, leading slightly at 49% to 46% for Democrats.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">A quarter of Republican respondents to the poll disapproved of Trump’s handling of the presidency.</p>