Brandi Vandivier

Brandi Cooper Vandivier was born in Terre Haute, Indiana. She earned an undergraduate degree from Indiana State University in May 2000 and a graduate degree from Indiana University in May 2006. Her professional experience includes working as a neonatal nurse practitioner.[1]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner, wife, and mother. I've spent my career caring for families during their most difficult moments of their lives and I'm tired of policies that continue to make life harder for the people. I see problems, and I want to help fix them. My oldest child was born 10 weeks early due to a life threatening pregnancy complication and we spent months in the hospital. I experienced that time not only as a mother, but also through the lens of a NNP who works in healthcare. I understand first hand what families need when a child is critically ill - the time to be there, the financial impact a prolonged hospitalization can have, and the support required to get through an incredibly difficult period. As a NP, I'm trained to think critically, evaluate the facts, and make decisions based on evidence. I'm also used to working as part of a team, listening to different perspectives, and coming together to make the best decision possible-often in situations where the decisions have real consequences for families. I want to bring that same approach to the Statehouse.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Families- Wages are not keeping up with the cost of living. Minimum wage hasn't increased. Families are facing higher costs for housing, groceries, healthcare and utilities. I believe pay transparency is a key piece to addressing wages. People deserve to know what a job pays before they invest their time applying and interviewing. Workers deserve to know whether they are being paid a fairly. Paid family and medical leave is also important to economic security. When people have to take unpaid time off to care for someone they love, they can quickly fall behind on rent, mortgage, utilities and other basic expenses. Strengthening collective bargaining rights is essential to improving wages, safety and other workplace benefits.Support Public Schools-Indiana has continued to dismantle the funding for public education under a Republican supermajority. Public schools, per the Indiana Constitution, are required to provide a free and uniform system for all students. Private schools do not have this same responsibility. They are not required to accept all students and can choose students that they want to educate. Instead of targeting students with the greatest need, taxpayers are increasingly subsidizing private school tuition for families who were already able to afford it. This isn't strengthening education-it's diverting more public dollars away from schools that educate the vast majority of Indiana's children, especially in rural communities.Healthcare-Costs in Indiana are some of the highest in the midwest, and we are feeling it. The cost of healthcare services continues to rise. Insurance premiums and out-of-pocket costs keep increasing. Prescription drug pricing is often opaque, and for too many families, medications are unaffordable. At the same time, Indiana has made cuts to Medicaid, which provides healthcare coverage to a significant number of Hoosiers, including mothers, children, people with disabilities, and veterans. As a NNP, I see what happens when people can't access care early. Problems that could have been treated become emergencies, and those costs ultimately affect all of us. All while Indiana has a budget surplus. We need policies that tackle these costs.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Paid Family Medical Leave, Public Education, Access to Healthcare, Healthcare Affordability, Collective Bargaining Rights, Environmental Safety, Nurse Staffing and Patient Safety

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Accessibility, Transparency, Good Listener, Critical Thinker

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

IBEW Local 725

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I have been a lifelong Indiana resident and I have seen the impact of the decisions in Indianapolis to our rural communities. I believe we need a strong advocate for our area. I am a wife, mother, neonatal nurse practitioner and school board member. I want Indiana to be a place other states can look to for inspiration because we create policies that support Hoosiers. I am running on a platform to "Revive Indiana with CPR.

C(children and families)

P(public education)

R(right to healthcare transparency)

I am committed to working with you to make Indiana the best place to live and work.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

C - Children & Families - Advocate for policies that expand FMLA, expand maternity leave protections, address Indiana's high infant mortality rate, liveable wages and improve breastfeeding ratesP - Public Education - Advocate for resources for public schools including funding changes, policies that support teachers and provide for recruiting and retaining people in the professionR - Right to Healthcare Transparency - Advocate for price transparency for healthcare services, notification of out of network billing prior to service, prescription prices and nurse/patient ratios

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I chose my platform of "Revive Indiana with CPR" because I think these areas of public policy affect every Hoosier. As a nurse practitioner, I am passionate about delivering high quality and affordable care to all patients. I have spent my career advocating for patients and families and I believe that being a state representative would be another way I can do this. The last 4 years on our school board has given me insight to the challenges that public schools are facing. I believe that everyone benefits from a well educated society. Even if you don't have children or your children are grown, we are educating the future doctors, electricians, mechanics and thousands of other professions. I believe it is important that we encourage critical thinking so that the students will be prepared for their future. We need excellent teachers committed to our students which will require Indiana to provide resources for teachers to be able to do their job and support their families. They should not have to choose between the two. As a mother and nurse practitioner I have seen and experienced the challenges of being a working parent. We need a system that supports working families instead of making it more challenging. While these issues affect everyone, they are going to be challenging to fix and I will put in the time and work required to do it. They are not issues that will be fixed overnight and will require dedication and persistence to make changes.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Honesty, a strong advocate, hard working, accessible, approachable and a good listener.

What legacy would you like to leave?

I would like to leave a legacy of a service to others. I want people to feel like they can talk to me about their issues/concerns and that I will listen and help in whatever capacity that I can.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

I worked for Dale's Pharmacy starting in high school and continued through college. I learned about medications, which was helpful for nursing school, but looking back what I learned the most was about how to treat people. This was a small town pharmacy that provided that personal experience to the customers. We delivered the medicine to people that couldn't get out, people had accounts they charged to if they couldn't pay for their medicine and it was often a place where people would just come to talk. Not many businesses like this exist anymore but the lessons learned in places like this are invaluable. We live in a fast paced society where the goal is to do more with less but we have lost sight of what is truly important and that is making sure our people are taken care of.

What do you perceive to be your state’s greatest challenges over the next decade?

I believe our greatest challenges over the next decade include education, healthcare and families.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

I believe it's not only beneficial to build relationships with other legislators but imperative to do so. Each legislator brings a different background and perspective and it's important that we hear from others that don't always see things the way we do. I believe that working collaboratively with the other legislators is essential to getting Indiana in a place where we can serve all Hoosiers better.