Sen. Tillis' Office Under Fire For Comments To Cancer Survivor

NORTH CAROLINA — Sen. Thom Tillis is facing intense criticism after a staffer in his office was recorded dismissing the concerns of a North Carolina cancer survivor who called the lawmaker's officer for help with health insurance, comparing access to healthcare to buying a dress shirt.

Bev Veals of Carolina Beach, North Carolina and a three-time cancer survivor, made the recording when she called Tillis' office to ask for help out of fear she would lose her health insurance after her husband was furloughed earlier in the year due to the pandemic. The recording was broadcast Tuesday by WRAL.

"I wanted answers because the thought of having no health care and possibly getting sick with COVID is extremely frightening," she told the station.

During her calls to Tillis' office, she encountered a staffer who showed little empathy for her situation, which prompted her to record their conversations, she told WRAL.

"You’re saying that, if you can’t afford it, you don’t get to have it, and that includes health care?" she asked the staffer. He responded: "Yeah, just like if I want to go to the store and buy a new dress shirt. If I can’t afford that dress shirt, I don’t get to get it."

"But health care is something that people need, especially if they have cancer," she said.
"Well, you got to find a way to get it," the staffer said, adding "Sounds like something you're going to have to figure it out."

Tillis' office offered an apology for the exchange, according to WRAL. "The way Mrs. Veals was talked to by a staff assistant in our Washington office was completely inappropriate and violates the code of conduct Senator Tillis has for his staff, which is why immediate disciplinary action has been taken," Daniel Keylin, a spokesperson for Tillis, told the station.

You can listen to the recording and read more about the report here.