# Roger Marshall ## Summary U.S. Senator from Kansas since 2021. Former U.S. Rep (KS-01, 2017–2021). Physician (OB/GYN); Army Reserve service. Won the 2020 open-seat Senate race (Pat Roberts retirement) 53.2–42.4 over Barbara Bollier. Running for a second term in 2026. ## Senate career - One term (2021–2027) - Agriculture, Banking, HELP, Veterans' Affairs committees - Reliable R vote; farm-bureau / rural-economy alignment - COVID-era physician-voice: prominent in GOP pandemic-policy framing - Generally lower media profile than some MAGA-brand senators ## 2026: running Running for a second term. Former Gov. [[Laura Kelly]] (D) ruled out a Senate run, removing the only Democrat with statewide win history. Kansas has not elected a Democratic senator since 1932. See [[KS-Sen-2026]] — field of 8+ Democrats but no establishment frontrunner; Likely R rating holds. ## The medical-debt lawsuits — reported September 8, 2026 A *New York Times* investigation by Sarah Kliff, published **September 8, 2026**, found that the obstetrics practice Marshall owned in Great Bend, Kansas **sued more than 700 of its own patients** over unpaid bills. The reporting rests on court records, not on allegation. | Finding | Figure | |---|---| | Patients sued | **700+** | | Annual interest charged on unpaid balances | **18%** | | Patients arrested after missing court dates | **81** | | Smallest bill sued over | **$101** | | Principal venue | **Barton County, Kansas** — above-average poverty and uninsured rates | Marshall owned the practice outright from **1998 to 2012** and co-owned it through **2019**. One patient's $3,596 delivery bill grew past $7,000 with interest; she was arrested three times, the last in 2016. His responses have separated the billing from its consequences. A campaign spokesperson said "judges issue warrants when people repeatedly miss court dates, not doctors," and that Marshall "spent decades caring for patients regardless of their ability to pay," using "the exact same billing and outside collection procedures as every other business or hospital in Kansas." His attorney confirmed Marshall set the 18% rate through signed patient contracts while saying he "was not involved in the decision to issue warrants or garnish wages." ### Why it matters here Marshall's political identity is **the doctor in the Senate** — he sits on the HELP committee and has been the Republican conference's physician-voice on abortion, contraception and pandemic policy. The story attacks that identity at its root rather than at its politics, which is why it travelled. It also lands inside a re-election year in a state where the [[2026 Midterm Elections]] have moved [[KS-Sen-2026]] to Lean R, and where the party's rural base is separately under strain from ICE enforcement in the cattle economy. ## Related KB entities - [[KS-Sen-2026]] — his re-election race - [[2026 Midterm Elections]] ## Sources - [Wikipedia — Roger Marshall](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Marshall_(American_politician)) - [Medical Economics — Sen. Roger Marshall's obstetrics practice sued more than 700 patients over unpaid bills](https://www.medicaleconomics.com/view/sen-roger-marshall-s-obstetrics-practice-sued-more-than-700-patients-over-unpaid-bills) - [Health Exec — Doctor-turned-senator sued 700+ patients for medical debts, often charging 18% interest](https://healthexec.com/topics/healthcare-management/healthcare-economics/doctor-turned-senator-sued-700-patients-medical-debts-often-charging-18-interest) - [The New Republic — GOP Senator Built Fortune Suing People Who Couldn't Pay Health Bills](https://newrepublic.com/post/215156/gop-senator-marshall-sued-people-couldnt-pay-health-bills) - [Forbes — When Doctors Sue Patients: The Roger Marshall Story](https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardmenger/2026/09/10/when-doctors-sue-patients-senator-roger-marshall-story-cuts-both-ways/) - Primary reporting: Sarah Kliff, *The New York Times*, September 8, 2026