Sandy Praeger (born October 21, 1944) is a former politician from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to ...

who served as the

Kansas Insurance Commissioner The Kansas Insurance Commissioner (KIC), in full the Kansas State Insurance Commissioner, has the primary responsibility to the people whose personal lives are protected by insurance in the state of Kansas. It is an elected position and is curr ...

from 2003 to 2015. Prior to her term as insurance commissioner, she was a member of the

Kansas Senate The Kansas Senate is the upper house of the Kansas Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Kansas. It is composed of 40 senators elected from single-member districts, each with a population of at least 60,000 inhabitants. Member ...

and

Kansas House of Representatives The Kansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocke ...

, and served as mayor of

Lawrence, Kansas Lawrence is the county seat of Douglas County, Kansas, United States, and the sixth-largest city in the state. It is in the northeastern sector of the state, astride Interstate 70, between the Kansas and Wakarusa Rivers. As of the 2020 census ...

. Although she won her elections as a Republican, she disagreed with the more

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

faction in her party, eventually leading her to endorse a Democrat to succeed her as insurance commissioner.

Political career

Early career

Praeger was a member of the

city commission City commission government is a form of local government in the United States. In a city commission government, voters elect a small commission, typically of five to seven members, typically on a plurality-at-large voting basis. These commissione ...

in her hometown of Lawrence, Kansas from 1985 to 1989, including a stint as mayor from 1986 to 1987.Sandy Praeger Campaign web site
"Meet Sandy" section, an
Meet Sandy
, retrieved August 4, 2007 She served one term in the Kansas House of Representatives, elected in 1990; in 1992, she won the first of her three terms in the Kansas State Senate, representing the 2nd District. Praeger served in the State Senate from 1993 to 2002, when she was elected as insurance commissioner;

Mark Buhler Mark Buhler (born June 16, 1954) is an American politician who served as the Kansas State Senator from the 2nd district from 2002 to 2004. Political career In December 2002, the Douglas County Republican Central Committee chose Buhler to fill ...

was elected to finish out the remaining two years of her term as State Senator.

Insurance Commissioner

Praeger was elected Insurance Commissioner on November 2, 2002, and her term began January 13, 2003. She was re-elected in 2006 and 2010 to the same position. As commissioner, she was responsible for regulating all insurance sold in Kansas and overseeing the nearly 1,700 insurance companies and 110,000 agents licensed to do business in the state. Praeger is also the former president of the

National Association of Insurance Commissioners The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) is the U.S. standard-setting and regulatory support organization created and governed by the chief insurance regulators from the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and five U.S. territ ...

, and has been their spokesperson in favor of maintaining state insurance regulation rather than an optional federal charter. During her term in office, she supported the

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and colloquially known as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Pres ...

and opposed conservative Republican Governor

Sam Brownback Samuel Dale Brownback (born September 12, 1956) is an American attorney, politician, diplomat, and member of the Republican Party who served as the United States Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom from 2018 to 2021. Brownba ...

's plan to join a nine-state healthcare compact. Praeger chose not to seek re-election in 2014. Instead, she chose to endorse the

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

candidate, Dennis Anderson, to succeed her as Insurance Commissioner. Praeger is a graduate of the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

Organizations

* Speaker, American Academy of Pediatrics * Speaker, American Association of Health Plans * Founding Member, Court Appointed Special Advocates * Speaker, Forum for State Health Policy Leadership * Founding Member, Haskell Indian Nations University Foundation * Founding Member, Health Care Access * Speaker, National Association of Chain Drug Stores * Speaker, National Association of Health Data Organizations * President-Elect/Secretary/Treasurer, National Association of Insurance Commissioners * Former Vice-Chair, National Association of Insurance Commissioners Midwestern Zone * Speaker, National Conference of State Legislatures * Board of Directors, United Way of Douglas County * Speaker, Women in Government.

References

External links

*
Interview with Praeger at the Kansas Oral History Project
{{DEFAULTSORT:Praeger, Sandy Republican Party Kansas state senators Living people Mayors of places in Kansas Republican Party members of the Kansas House of Representatives Kansas Insurance Commissioners University of Kansas alumni Women mayors of places in Kansas Women state legislators in Kansas Politicians from Lawrence, Kansas Politicians from Fayetteville, North Carolina Women state constitutional officers of Kansas 1944 births 20th-century American women politicians 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century American politicians