Amy Acton

Amy Acton worked as a waitress and delivered newspapers on her way through college and medical school, a long way from the daily television briefings that later made her familiar across Ohio.¹ She grew up in Youngstown amid poverty and abuse, and now shares a blended family of six children with her husband, Eric, a teacher and coach.¹

Acton trained in pediatrics and preventive medicine, earned a public health degree and worked on childhood immunization through Project LOVE.¹ Her subsequent work included teaching at Ohio State, philanthropy at the Columbus Foundation and helping launch RAPID 5, an effort to connect central Ohio’s parks and waterways.¹

Republican Governor Mike DeWine appointed her state health director in 2019, putting her in charge when the pandemic arrived the following year.² Her department ordered business closures and restrictions on gatherings, and halted the March primary.² She left the directorship in June 2020 and continued as DeWine’s health adviser until August.²

Against Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, Acton is proposing child tax credits, medical debt relief and a state prescription purchasing initiative.³⁴ Her proposed credit would pay $1,000 annually per child through age six and $500 for older children through age 18, for families earning up to $85,000.³ Their tax debate pits her targeted assistance for working families against Ramaswamy’s plan to phase out Ohio’s income tax.³⁵