Last week, former North Carolina Governor and Senate Candidate Roy Cooper hosted a roundtable where he discussed skyrocketing healthcare costs.
Health care costs are skyrocketing and instead of making life easier, insurance companies and Washington DC leaders are leaving North Carolina families behind.
— Roy Cooper (@RoyCooperNC) January 15, 2026
While Michael Whatley fights for special interests, I’ll fight in the Senate to lower costs for North Carolinians. pic.twitter.com/8oWEFt10QK
In a press release, Cooper's campaign wrote:
Today, Roy Cooper hosted a roundtable discussion in Charlotte on the high costs of health care and discussed how insurance companies line their pockets and Washington takes away coverage while North Carolinians are struggling to make ends meet. The discussion covered how health care costs are out of control and the hurdles that insurance companies throw up at every turn to prevent people from receiving the care they need. This comes as DC politicians cut Medicaid and refuse to renew the ACA subsidies, making things even worse and sending health care costs skyrocketing for millions of North Carolinians.
“North Carolinians are struggling, and instead of working to make life easier, insurance companies and Washington DC leaders are leaving them behind, putting special interests ahead of hardworking families,” said Roy Cooper. “As Governor, I fought to expand Medicaid for hundreds of thousands of working North Carolinians, helping to lower health care costs for everyone. While Michael Whatley cheers on Washington as they make things worse, I’ll be focused in the Senate on making life more affordable for North Carolinians.”David Lamb
The campaign also said Cooper has been "laser-focused on lowering healthcare costs for North Carolinians," an effort that included a massive Medicaid expansion. That, of course, doesn't cut costs. It shifts the burden of costs.
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But there are even bigger problems with Cooper's claims. While he says he's fighting health insurance companies that "line their pockets" while North Carolinians struggle with skyrocketing costs, it turns out Cooper has taken campaign donations from some of the industry's top executives and PACs. In fact, it appears Cooper has taken in more than $160,000 from PACs affiliated with insurance companies and the health insurance/health care industry.
According to the FEC, Cooper received donations from Mike Woodard, President of Molina NC Plan, State President. Woodard donated $4,000 to Cooper's Senate campaign. He's also received donations from several Blue Cross NC executives, including David Lamb, Managing Counsel ($500), Tricia Garland ($450), and Jason Beverly ($250).
The North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE) also shows that Cooper has received more than $84,000 from health insurance industry PACs, including Anthem PAC, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of NC Employee PAC, the Centene Corporation PAC, Cigna Corporation PAC, the United Health Group PAC, and CVS Health PAC. Reports also show a long list of health insurance industry employees who have donated to Cooper's campaigns over the years.
This begs the question: how can North Carolinians trust Roy Cooper to bring down healthcare costs when his campaigns have been bankrolled by the same insurance companies he claims he's standing up to? North Carolinians deserve honesty and transparency.
Roy Cooper portrays himself as a champion of families crushed by skyrocketing health care costs. His donor list tells a different story. When insurance executives and health care industry PACs are among a candidate’s biggest financial backers, promises to take on “special interests” and "bring down costs" ring hollow. North Carolinians should ask whether Cooper’s fight is really for patients — or for the insurers who helped fund his campaign.
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