Interview
A Cure for Congress?
An Interview With Jason Westin, MD
take care of patients
as an elected
official, I would be
advocating for them
in a different way.
I still love my job
– I’m not moving
into politics because
I don’t want to be
a doctor anymore.
Yet, I feel that we
need people with
experience in health
care and research to
find solutions to the
problems we face.
I didn’t build my
medical career to
try to transition into
politics, but I think
my medical career
will serve me well in
that transition.
The American Society of Hematology
is a non-partisan organization
that does not support any political
candidate or party.
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ASH Clinical News
When did you
throw your hat
Dr. Westin with his wife Shannon and their three children.
into the ring?
The November
election last year changed how
As a hematologist and researcher, Jason Westin, MD,
I view politics and the direction
has dedicated his career to expanding and advancing
of our country. The morning
treatment options for patients with lymphomas.
after the election, I felt like the
Now, he’s turning that focus to the American health-
country needed people with
care system. In May, Dr. Westin announced his run for
different perspectives. Of course,
Representative of the 7th Congressional District of Texas. as a doctor and not a politician,
I didn’t have much knowledge
ASH Clinical News spoke with Dr. Westin about why he
of how to get my voice heard. At
decided to enter the congressional race, coming off the
sidelines to take a political stand, and how he’s navigating first, I thought about supporting
candidates or speaking out or
the challenges of balancing politics and patients. (The
testifying in hearings, but then
following interview has been edited for length and clarity.)
I came across 314 Action – a
group of political professionals
who are geared to help doctors
What inspired you to return
When did you become
and scientists get off the sidelines
to politics at this stage in
interested in politics?
and into politics.
your career?
Fresh out of college, I was deciding
Most of my fellow doctors
It was a difficult decision to
between going into politics or
are political people with strong
make, and one that my wife and I
medicine. I had been accepted to
medical school, and I also interned in struggled with. She is also a doctor beliefs, but we are apolitical in
our professional lives. For that
Senator Bob Graham’s (D-FL) office, and cancer researcher, so she
reason, many doctors don’t tend
understood that running for office
where I worked on health policy. It
to get involved in politics. So,
was an eye-opening experience, but would mean making some tough
discovering 314 Action (named
sacrifices. Eventually I realized
I thought I could do more good for
after the first three numbers of
that, while I wouldn’t be able to
more people as a physician.
pi) has been helpful. With their
guidance and support, I’ve built
a team that’s helping to make
this a legitimate, and hopefully
successful, campaign. This is not a
moral crusade – we’re in it to win.
Who are your opponents?
First, I’ll be running against
several candidates in the March
2018 Democratic primary. The
advantage of a primary is that
it gets more people engaged in
their local politics. They may
all support various people at the
initial stage, but at the end of the
day, we all want to come together
and support our candidate in
the general election. For that
reason, I’m keeping my primary
race positive and focused on the
issues that matter. I don’t want
to do anything that’s going to be
detrimental to the race going the
right direction.
If I get through the primary, my
opponent in the general election
would be Rep. John Culberson,
a career politician. He’s been in
“We need
people with
experience in
health care
and research
to find
solutions to
the problems
we face.”
August 2017