Amy Acton

Amy Acton's career experience includes working as a doctor, as the director of Project L.O.V.E., and as a professor of maternal and child health and global public health at Ohio State University. She has also worked with the Columbus Foundation. Acton was appointed by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) in 2019 to serve as the director of the Ohio Department of Public Health. She helped found the Center for Human Kindness and the nonprofit organization Rapid 5. The John F. Kennedy Library Foundation gave Acton a Profile in Courage Award in 2021, and USA Today named her Woman of the Year for Ohio in 2022.[1]

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Campaign websiteActon's campaign website stated the following:Reducing Costs for Ohio FamiliesEverywhere I go, Ohioans tell me they feel squeezed by high costs in every part of their lives.Growing up without stable housing, reliable meals, or basic necessities, I understand what that’s like. Even today, my husband Eric and I still experience sticker shock when we shop for groceries or fill up the gas tank. As governor, my number one priority will be to secure a tax cut for Ohio’s working families to put money back in their pockets, lift families out of poverty, and make sure Ohioans see their hard work pay off. This state has put special interests and wealthy elites before working families in this state for far too long. Everywhere we go, we hear from families that they are struggling to keep up with rising costs and to afford the basics for their kids. It’s time to put Ohioans first again.My Working Families Tax Cut is designed to benefit hardworking Ohioans and help parents shoulder the burden of raising a family. It includes an Earned Income Credit that will support up to 775,000 working families, reward Ohioans’ hard work, and lift families out of poverty. I will also fight for a child tax credit of $1,000 a year for children aged 0-6 and $500 for children aged 7-18 for families making up to $85,000 in annual income, which would help ease the burden for more than 1.4 million children and their families. Under my Working Families Tax Cut, a married couple with two children earning $60,000 a year could receive an additional $1,778 back in their pockets.Cleaning Up CorruptionEnough is enough. It’s time to end the cost of corruption in Ohio and put working families first. When I am governor, hard-working Ohioans will stop footing the bill for the cost of corruption in our state. It is time to put the needs of working families over the wants of billionaires, corporations and special interests. As governor, I will crack down on the corruption that raises our costs — requiring transparency, fighting to end pay-to-play schemes, and shining a light on bidding, contracting, and appointment processes to ensure decisions are made on behalf of our taxpayers. Ohioans deserve a governor who will put them first, not corporations and special interests.On day one as governor, I will issue anti-corruption Executive Orders to restore ethics to Ohio’s government and tackle the cost of corruption in our state. Day One Executive Orders: Create an Anti-Corruption Task ForceThis task force will take public input, conduct audits, interview stakeholders, and make recommendations within my first 100 days in office to tackle corruption, fraud and abuse; add stricter oversight; lower costs; and ensure that our government is working for Ohioans.Close the Revolving Door and Clean Up AppointmentsOhio’s appointment process is broken and has been at the root of many of the state’s corruption scandals. We need stronger guardrails to prevent this cost of corruption before they happen.Prohibit lobbyists, lawyers and consultants who have represented, been employed by or received compensation from any organizations regulated by any Ohio regulatory entity in the past three years to then serve on the same regulatory entity. Anyone who is pursuing a role must disclose all related relationships, including payments within the prohibition window. These restrictions will apply to appointments made by the governor, and I will encourage others with appointment authority to follow these same guidelines.Require state regulators appointed by the governor to sign an ethics pledge for a mandatory “cooling off” period of three years. The pledge will prohibit any former regulatory commissioners from working for an organization they regulated. Require strict conflict of interest rules, including mandatory public recusal rules, for all political appointees to decision-making bodies. Expand Disclosure and TransparencyDark money in Ohio politics has taken our state backwards and raised prices for hardworking Ohioans. We need transparency in the contract and regulatory decision-making process because Ohioans deserve to know how their taxpayer dollars are being spent. This is a low-cost solution with enormous benefits for Ohio taxpayers.Shine a light on dark money in Ohio politics by requiring state contractors and advocacy organizations that spend on political campaigns to publicly disclose their donors.Require additional disclosure by state contractors and vendors, mandating that any company bidding on contracts above $50,000 disclose beneficial ownership, shareholders with 10% or higher equity, and political contributions — including donations to PACs and advocacy organizations. Create a public procurement database listing state contracts, the winning bidder, the bid window, and the award amount so the state contracting process remains as transparent as possible. The above directives will apply to activity within the constitutional and statutory authority of my role as governor, and I will encourage other constitutional office-holders to do the same.Improving Ohio's EducationEvery kid in Ohio deserves access to a free, high quality public education. Ohio invented public schools! But decades of privatization schemes and special interest giveaways have led to worse outcomes for our kids. As Governor, I will put working families first by restoring public school funding to a constitutional level and implement the bipartisan Fair School Funding Plan. I will bring reform to our corrupt school voucher system, which funnels billions of hardworking Ohio taxpayer dollars to private schools with no transparency or accountability. Public money should be for public schools.My number one priority is making sure that Ohio’s kids are getting the world class education they deserve. We will invest in new, 21st century approaches to math and literacy and create workforce training programs that give our kids the tools they need to thrive. Our public schools are the foundation of our communities. As a kid, public schools saved my life. It was the safety net I needed. That’s why I’m fighting for free breakfast and lunch. No child in Ohio should go hungry. Providing this support ensures that all of Ohio’s kids have the fuel they need to learn and thrive. Our kids deserve nothing less.Lowering the Cost of Health CareAs a doctor, I’ve seen firsthand how important it is that Ohioans can both access and afford the care they need — and how right now, that simply isn’t the case for so many people in our state. Ohioans are struggling; more than 160,000 people dropped their healthcare coverage through the ACA since 2025, 11 rural hospitals are at risk of closure, and prescription drug prices are rising.As governor, I will protect against attacks on Medicaid and Medicare from Columbus and Washington by helping Ohioans enroll and stay on Medicaid by eliminating unnecessary red tape, shortening approval wait times and eliminating the waste, fraud and abuse that drives up costs and jeopardizes Ohioans’ care.I’ll reduce prescription drug prices by launching Ohio Rx, an online platform that will leverage Ohio’s purchasing power from its Medicaid single pharmacy benefit manager to drive down drug prices for all Ohioans. I will also push to require that out-of-pocket purchases for medication counts towards Ohioans’ health insurance deductibles. Too many Ohioans are facing skyrocketing insurance premiums, and having to choose between putting other necessities on hold or forgoing insurance altogether. As governor, I will work to bring far more transparency to insurance and hospital pricing, lower healthcare premiums in the process, and support small businesses in covering their employees. I will strengthen Ohio’s efforts to crack down on surprise billing and build on the bipartisan effort to end predatory collection practices that only hurt Ohio families. We are all just one healthcare disaster away from losing everything. No one should go bankrupt because of a necessary medical procedure, but I’ve heard far too many stories from Ohioans who have experienced this. Medical debt is the leading form of consumer debt. On my first day in office, I’ll direct our state to work to relieve medical debt for pennies on the dollar to give our families some breathing room and the fresh start they need.Growing Ohio Jobs and BusinessesAll across Ohio, I hear from people who are concerned that we are not doing enough to compete in the modern economy, and the data is clear: the current trickle-down, pay-to-play approach is not working. Ohio is 16th in unemployment, 41st in GDP growth, and most regions are struggling to retain good jobs. Whenever you’re 41st in anything – especially after giving away billions in taxpayer dollars – you need to take a hard look at what you’re doing. So on my first day as Governor, I will work with leaders across the state to do a full, top-to-bottom review of Jobs Ohio, requiring more transparency and greater accountability so we can put forward a new plan to grow our economy.Across government, I will focus on supporting small businesses, advancing regional economic development, expanding workforce development and skills training, and investing in the modern infrastructure we need to compete, from broadband to transportation. Most importantly, when our state makes investments, we must ensure those investments lead to good jobs for Ohio workers, instead of simply padding the bottom lines of big out-of-state corporations.We must learn that in the 21st-century economy, building the best quality of life possible is the surest way to attract and retain the talented workers it takes to build a strong economy.  Standing Up for WorkersUnlike my opponent, I’m not afraid to say the word “union.” I am a proud member of a union family – my grandfather was a union steelworker in Youngstown, and my husband is a proud 43-year public school teacher. I’ve walked the picket line with UAW members in Cincinnati and Teamsters in Dublin. I am the only pro-labor candidate in this race – my opponent wants to eliminate teacher’s unions and called to end federal worker unions. As governor, I will protect our unions and ensure that Ohio never becomes a right-to-work state. I will always have working families’ backs and fight to keep Ohio’s unions strong.I’ll combat the constant SB 5- style efforts to attack our unions and collective bargaining rights , and I will use the Commerce Department and other offices to ensure that employers follow collective bargaining laws, crack down on wage theft, worker misclassification, and other abuses that deprive workers of their hard-earned wages. I will always be a steadfast pro-union, pro-worker Governor. Building Safer CommunitiesKeeping Ohioans safe is my top priority as governor. Everyone deserves to feel and be safe in their communities, no matter where they live. Republicans in Ohio have defunded public safety for years to pay for tax cuts for Ohio’s wealthiest. These cuts have resulted in layoffs, chronic officer shortages, and understaffed first responder units. As Governor, I will rebuild state and local partnerships, fully fund the police and public safety, and ensure that communities again have the public safety resources they need. My opponent’s plan to eliminate property taxes will defund our police, firefighters and first responders. This hurts our kids and makes all of us less safe. As governor, I will prioritize community partnership with law enforcement, fully fund our local law enforcement, support our first responders and invest in addiction treatment, mental health services and community programming across our state.Ensuring Reproductive FreedomOhioans have made it very clear that they trust women to make their own decisions about their bodies, not politicians.As a doctor, I feel the same way. Every Ohioan deserves the right to make their own reproductive health care decisions, free from government interference, plain and simple. When I am Governor, I will protect reproductive freedom so that every woman can access safe, legal abortion care, contraception, fertility treatments, and miscarriage care. I will fight back at attempts to undermine Issue 1 and continue to protect and expand access to reproductive care for all Ohioans.Aging in placeAs more Ohioans enter their golden years, we need to make sure they are doing so with dignity and support. Ohio’s senior population is expected to top three million in the next few years, and we have the chance to make Ohio a leader in elder care. Eric and I have had to balance the demands of caring for aging family members while raising children, and we understand how difficult this is for working families. My opponent’s pals in Congress voted overwhelmingly to cut Medicaid benefits for home and community-based services, but I believe that we need to support families and caregivers as they help our seniors age in place, at home. We can’t sit idly by; we must invest in career pathways and training for our long-term care workforce, who staff assisted living and nursing home facilities, to keep up with greater demand as Ohioans age.ActOn Lowering Costs: Amy’s Affordability AgendaActOn: Lowering Costs: My Promise for Ohio OVERVIEW: Ohioans are working harder than ever, but they just can’t make ends meet. My ActOn Lowering Costs Affordability Agenda will lower costs, help Ohioans keep more of their money by cutting taxes, put money back in people’s pockets, and build an Ohio that delivers for working families. WORKING FAMILIES TAX CUT: As governor, my number one priority will be to secure a tax cut for Ohio’s working families to put money back in their pockets, lift families out of poverty, and make sure Ohioans see their hard work pay off. This state has put special interests and wealthy elites before working families in this state for far too long. Everywhere we go, we hear from families that they are struggling to keep up with rising costs and to afford the basics for their kids. It’s time to put Ohioans first again.My Working Families Tax Cut is designed to benefit hardworking Ohioans and help parents shoulder the burden of raising a family. It includes an Earned Income Credit that will support up to 775,000 working families, reward Ohioans’ hard work, and lift families out of poverty. I will also fight for a child tax credit of $1,000 a year for children aged 0-6 and $500 for children aged 7-18 for families making up to $85,000 in annual income, which would help ease the burden for more than 1.4 million children and their families. Under my Working Families Tax Cut, a married couple with two children earning $60,000 a year could receive an additional $1,778 back in their pockets. LOWERING HEALTHCARE COSTS:As a doctor, I’ve seen firsthand how important it is that Ohioans can both access and afford the care they need — and how right now, that simply isn’t the case for so many people in our state. Ohioans are struggling; more than 120,000 people dropped their healthcare coverage through the ACA since 2025, 11 rural hospitals are at risk of closure, and prescription drug prices are rising. That’s why, as governor, I will: 1. Protect Against Attacks on Medicaid and Medicare from Columbus and Washington – I will help Ohioans stay on and enroll in Medicaid by eliminating unnecessary red tape, shortening approval waiting periods, and eliminating waste and fraud that drive up costs and jeopardize Ohioans’ care. With Medicaid under attack, I will direct state agencies to ensure Ohioans can get the care they need. 2. Reduce Prescription Drug Prices – As governor, I will launch Ohio Rx, an online platform that will leverage Ohio’s purchasing power from its Medicaid single pharmacy benefit manager to drive down prescription drug prices for all Ohioans. I will also push to require that out-of-pocket purchases for medications and other healthcare supplies count towards Ohioans’ health insurance deductibles.3. Forgive Medical Debt – No one should go bankrupt because of a necessary medical procedure, but I’ve heard too many stories from Ohioans who have had exactly that happen. Medical debt is the leading form of consumer debt, which is why on my first day in office I will direct our state to join the cities in our state – including Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Toledo – that have successfully relieved nearly a billion dollars in medical debt for working families, often for pennies on the dollar, giving families some breathing room and the fresh start they need. 4. Lower Healthcare Premiums – Too many Ohioans are facing skyrocketing insurance premiums, and having to choose between putting other necessities on hold or forgoing insurance altogether. As governor, I will work to bring far more transparency to insurance and hospital pricing, lower healthcare premiums in the process, and support small businesses in covering their employees. 5. Crack Down on Surprise Billing and Aggressive Collections – Just like with any other service, Ohioans should know up-front how much their medical treatments will cost. To keep Ohioans out of punishing medical debt, I will strengthen Ohio’s efforts to crack down on surprise billing and build on the bipartisan effort to end the predatory and overly aggressive collection practices that only hurt Ohio families.TACKLING HIGH ENERGY BILLS: Our energy bills are too high. Last summer, Eric and my electric bill went up $140 in one month – and I know I’m not alone. As governor, I will fight to lower your bills and save you money. 1. Put Consumers First:I will work to restore the checks and balances vital to a high-performing and affordable state energy strategy. I will appoint PUCO commissioners who put ratepayers first and are not beholden to utility companies.I will also work with our Attorney General to restore the budget of the Office of the Consumers’ Counsel so that we can better protect consumers against excessive rate hikes and predatory practices. 2. Lower Energy Bills for Ohioans: My administration will lower costs for Ohio families through an all-of-the-above energy strategy that:Enhances production and incorporates the lowest-cost and cleanest sources of energy readily available. Expands access to cost-saving programs such as Ohio’s Home Energy Assistance Program, the Percentage of Income Payment Plan (PIPP), and Home Weatherization Assistance Program, and makes sure these programs continue to deliver for Ohioans in the face of attacks from Washington.Reinstates the pro-consumer programs gutted under HB6, including Energy Efficiency, Demand Response and Renewable Portfolio Standards to give consumers and Ohio’s small businesses the tools they need to reduce their bills.  Empowers consumers to better control their costs and usage in order to reduce their bills.3. Coordinate Across the Region to Reform PJM:On my watch, Ohio will work with the 12 other states in PJM to advocate for affordable reliable power for all Ohioans. PUTTING MONEY BACK IN OHIOANS’ POCKETS:As costs rise, predatory practices and unseen fees are putting an even greater burden on Ohioans. As governor, I will fight to put money back in Ohioans’ pockets and protect consumers from hidden fees, predatory practices, and fraud.Cracking Down on Wage Theft: There are employers right here in Ohio who are stealing from more than 213,000 of our hardworking friends and neighbors, and it’s happening in plain sight. Too many Ohioans are being paid less than the minimum wage, being asked to work “off the books,” or being forced to work unpaid overtime, not to mention the employers who are stealing tips and misclassifying employees as independent contractors. On the first day of the Acton administration, I will issue an executive order to require a rapid turnaround on wage theft cases, so Ohioans get the money they have earned in a timely manner. We should be rewarding and supporting employers who follow the law and respect their workers, and cracking down on bad actors.Protecting Consumers and Seniors from Predatory Practices, Fraud, and Collections:Ohio had the sixth-largest volume of complaints about elder scams in the country in 2023, with losses exceeding $64 million.I will protect consumers and seniors from scams that target their life savings by:  Directing banks, regulators, and law enforcement to work together to protect seniors from identity theft, scams, and fraud Creating consumer protections for veterans, military families, and students, such as bans on predatory student loan practices Modernizing the SNAP EBT system to make it harder to steal benefits from those who rely on SNAP assistance Cracking down on predatory debt collection on student loans and medical debt Eliminate Hidden Fees on Ohioans:1. I will end the surprise markups on concerts + sports tickets by:Supporting House Bill 563, a bipartisan bill targeting fees on the secondary marketEnacting First Click Guarantee – Dr. Acton will work to ensure that the very first price a fan sees on a website must be the final price they pay Protect Ohioans against speculative tickets and bot technology, and hold individuals accountable for unfair or deceptive trade practices.2. App Store Accountability: I will push for measures that empower parents to limit exposure to unauthorized in-app purchases, inappropriate content and age-restricted material.I will work with the state legislature to require age verification and other protections against in-app purchases, which can add up quickly for families and expose kids to content they shouldn’t be seeing. 3. Price Gouging: I will take action to crack down on price gouging by making sure regulators are doing their job, establishing a hotline to report price gouging in Ohio, and working closely with the AG’s office to monitor prices, bring forward enforcement cases, and crack down on illegal and anti-competitive practices that jack up prices.Putting Ohio Consumers FirstWe have been putting the wants of billionaires, corporations and special interests over the needs of Ohio’s working families for far too long. I’m fighting to put money back into Ohioans’ pockets. On day one, I’ll issue an executive order to require a rapid turnaround on wage theft cases. There are employers right here in Ohio who are stealing from more than 213,000 of our hardworking friends and neighbors. I’ll work to end the surprise markups on concerts and sports tickets by supporting House Bill 563, a bipartisan bill targeting fees on the secondary market, and working to enact First Click Guarantee, where the very first price a fan sees on a website is the final price they pay. I’ll protect Ohioans against speculative tickets and bot technology, and hold individuals accountable for unfair practices.  Standing Up for Ohio's LGBT CommunityAll Ohioans deserve to be treated fairly and equally under the law. As governor, I am committed to standing up against discrimination and ensuring that every Ohioan — including members of the LGBT community — receives equal protection under the law. I will push for anti-discrimination laws so Ohioans aren’t unjustly fired from their job or denied housing, other public accommodations, or equal pay because of their race, gender, sexual orientation, or religion. As governor, I will be focused on bringing our communities together, not on sowing hatred and division; every Ohioan deserves to live freely and be treated with dignity.Lowering Energy CostsOur energy bills are too high. Last summer, our electric bill went up $140 in one month – and I know I’m not the only Ohioan who felt that. As governor, I will fight to lower your bills, put consumers first and build an energy strategy that works for all of us. I’ll lower energy bills for Ohioans by enhancing production and incorporating the lowest-cost and cleanest sources of energy. I’ll expand access to cost-saving programs like Ohio’s Home Energy Assistance Program, the Percentage of Income Payment Plan and Home Weatherization Assistance Program. I’ll fight to work with the 12 other states in the PJM to deliver affordable, reliable power for all Ohioans. Corruption has raised our energy bills in Ohio. That’s why I’ll stand up for consumers by appointing PUCO commissioners who put ratepayers first and are not beholden to utility companies. I’ll work with the Attorney General to restore the budget of the Office of the Consumers’ Counsel so we can protect consumers against excessive rate hikes and predatory practices. Our costs are too high; data centers must pay for the entirety of their energy so the burden doesn’t fall onto Ohio families or businesses. As governor, I will fight to rein in Ohio’s out-of-control long-term tax incentives, and add clawback provisions and much needed transparency. I’ll work to establish strong state guardrails that protect our local communities, environment and good-paying jobs. On my watch, Ohio will always be open for business but never for sale. Any data centers that are coming into our communities must be built and operated by Ohio’s union workers, alongside with community benefits agreements. Ohioans should be benefitting from these projects, not billionaires and special interests.Data CentersData centers are moving into Ohio’s communities in secrecy, raising costs and undermining our core values. This is unacceptable; Ohio cannot trust Vivek Ramaswamy to protect communities from his fellow big-tech billionaires.I support a conditional moratorium on data centers to ensure they cover one hundred percent of their utility costs, exclusively build with union labor, operate with full transparency, support the needs of local communities, live by Ohio’s environmental standards, and bring jobs to former industrial areas that have been left behind. Ohio is open for business, but we are not up for sale. My message as governor will be if you do not meet these conditions, we do not want you in Ohio.As governor, I will support: Robust state guardrails: As governor, I will add strong state guardrails that protect residents, workers and local communities from paying the price for new developments. All Costs Must Be Covered by Data Centers and Their Investors: All costs for gas, water and electricity needs to be covered by data centers and their investors, not Ohio taxpayers or our communities. Data centers must invest in their own energy generation options and prove the project will not increase our electricity prices or negatively impact regional reliability. The goal is to help lower regional costs and strengthen Ohio’s infrastructure and energy grid. We will prioritize low cost, carbon-free and net-zero energy options, accompanied by storage options.Good-Paying, Union Jobs: Any data center development must be exclusively built with union labor. The jobs to build, maintain, operate and upgrade data centers must be good-paying, union jobs operated by Ohioans who are trained in Ohio. Rein in Incentives: Ohio’s out-of-control long-term tax incentives must be reined in. I will fight for much-needed transparency and add clawback provisions to protect Ohio taxpayers.Transparency: Ohioans must know who is coming into our communities; transparency and accountability is not negotiable. Gov. Acton will end the secrecy and data center NDAs in Ohio as governor. Our communities need to know who they are working with. This secrecy has allowed for one-sided negotiations that undermine community interests and prevent residents from understanding the long-term impacts and risks of these projects. My priority is to protect residents, workers and local interest in all developments to ensure that our communities are benefitting.Data Centers Must Be Built on Brownfields or Industrial Areas Where Jobs Have Been Lost: New data centers coming to Ohio must be built on brownfields and previously developed industrial sites, not farms or in the hearts of our communities. They must be built where countless jobs have been directly lost for generations, including the thousands of vacant brownfield sites and areas in Ohio that are already zoned for industrial use. Data centers can’t disrupt our farmlands, rural communities, or our way of life in Ohio. Maintaining Environmental Standards: Ohio won’t loosen our air quality and groundwater standards for data centers. Ohioans deserve clean air and water. Data centers must maintain zero environmental impact and use responsible and modern water-management systems that protect local waterways, groundwater, and air and meet rigorous environmental and quality of life standards.Property Tax ReliefAs a result of systemic state underfunding of our public schools, several rounds of re-appraisals, market forces, and our corrupt Statehouse giving tax breaks to the wealthy, property taxes have drastically spiked for Ohioans across the state in recent years. Tax delinquencies have skyrocketed, and too many seniors and Ohioans on fixed incomes have been forced out of their homes. Ohioans need relief. That’s why as governor, I will:Expand the Homestead Exemption to Help Ohio’s SeniorsAs governor, I will expand the Homestead Exemption so more of Oh