Fred Mills (politician)

Fred Henry Mills, Jr. (born January 13, 1955), is an American pharmacist, banker, and politician from Parks, Louisiana currently serving as a Republican member of the Louisiana State Senate, having won a special election on January 22, 2011. Mills had previously represented District 46 in the Louisiana House of Representatives.[1]

Fred Henry Mills, Jr.
Member of the Louisiana Senate for the 22nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 24, 2011
Preceded by	Troy Hebert
Member of the Louisiana House of Representatives for the 46th district
In office January 14, 2008 – January 24, 2011
Preceded by	Sydnie Mae Maraist Durand
Succeeded by	Mike "Pete" Huval
Personal details
Born	(1955-01-13) January 13, 1955
Political party	Democratic (before until 2010) Republican Party (since 2010)
Spouse(s)	Deborah K. Mills
Occupation	Pharmacist, Banker, politician

Early life and education

Mills holds a degree in pharmacy from the University of Louisiana at Monroe. He is the owner in St. Martin Parish of Mills Cashway Pharmacy in Parks and the president and chief executive officer of Farmers-Merchants Bank and Trust Co. of Breaux Bridge.[2] Farmers-Merchants, originally established in 1932, also has a branch at 1525 Ambassador Caffery Parkway in Lafayette.[3]

Career

In the nonpartisan blanket primary held on October 20, 2007, the incumbent Democratic representative, Sydnie Mae Maraist Durand, did not seek reelection. In a two-candidate field, Mills, then a Democrat himself, won outright by a wide margin over a fellow Democrat, Marie Etienne of St. Martin Parish, 12,034 (84 percent) to 2,237 (16 percent).[4]

In 2008 and 2009, Mills received a 100 percent rating from the Louisiana Right-to-Life Federation. He has been rated 69 percent by the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry. The Louisiana Family Forum in 2009 rated him at 89 percent.[5]

Mills guided to passage in 2010 legislation to permit pharmacists to administer medication therapy management services to patients in Louisiana. The interest group, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, supported the legislation. The bill was signed on June 25, 2010, by then Governor Bobby Jindal. The measure authorizes the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals to create an MTM pharmacy program.[6]

NACDS president Steven C. Anderson said that the Louisiana measure "illustrates that pharmacist-administered medication therapy management is an important component in helping patients stay healthy and in reducing health-care costs. Pharmacists are uniquely qualified to offer health screenings and counsel patients about how to take their medications in the right ways to achieve better results. The law will also enable pharmacists to assist patients in managing chronic diseases, such as diabetes."[6]

In 2010, Mills joined several legislative colleagues in switching allegiance from the Democrats to the Republicans.[7] Others who made the switch in December 2010 are Representative Noble Ellington of Winnsboro in Franklin Parish and State Senators John Alario of Westwego in Jefferson Parish and John R. Smith of Leesville in Vernon Parish.[8]

Mills polled 12,812 votes in the special Senate election, or 60 percent of the total. The runner-up was Simone B. Champagne of Jeanerette, another recent Republican convert and a state representative from Iberia Parish, who received 4,040 votes (19 percent). Champagne campaigned as a "Reagan Republican" and had the open support of U.S. Senator David Vitter; she returned the favor by endorsing Vitter for governor in 2015. Independent David Groner finished third with 2,534 votes (12 percent). The remaining ballots favored two other Republican candidates and a second Independent hopeful. No Democrats ran for the position.[9]

Two Republicans ran in an April 2, 2011, special election to fill the nine months remaining in Mills' House term. St. Martin Parish councilman Mike "Pete" Huval defeated St. Martinville city councilman Craig Prosper, 58 to 42 percent.[10]

Mills held the title of "newest Louisiana state senator" for only a month. Jonathan W. Perry of Kaplan in Vermilion Parish, winner of a special election in District 26 on February 19, 2011, soon filled that billing, and oddly, he too is known for his humor, often appearing as a stand-up Cajun comic.[11] He is closely allied with his lifelong friend Scott Angelle, a member of the Louisiana Public Service Commission, who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2015.

Senate Health and Welfare Committee

In January 2016, Senate President John Alario appointed Mills chairman of the Senate Health and Welfare Committee.[12]

As the chairman of the health committee, Mills oversees the state's $12 billion Medicaid program. In 2018, Legislative Auditor Daryl Purpera said that the potential exists for fraud involving hundreds of millions of dollars in Medicaid funds. "Let's understand our risks and exposure and what we can do to mitigate it," Mills told his committee. Purpera earlier said that Medicaid had been "run kind of willy-nilly, loosey-goosey” by the Louisiana Department of Health. Purpera's warning was echoed by U.S. Senator John N. Kennedy and state Attorney General Jeff Landry as well as some state legislators. In a press release, Senator Kennedy said that the public will "happily pay for your doctor if you are too poor to be sick. I’m proud of that. But I’m neither happy about nor proud of the Medicaid fraud tolerated" by the Department of Health. The audits do not specify any specific fraud but mention a "risk group."[13]

Personal life

Mills previously served on the St. Martin Parish Council. He and his wife, Deborah K. Mills, reside in St. Martinville but have business interests throughout the parish. He is Roman Catholic.[1]

References

1. "Fred Mills Jr". congress.org. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
2. "Rep. Fred H. Mills Jr". house.louisiana.gov. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
3. "Opening Event Confirms St. Martin Parish Based - FM Bank - Expansion into Lafayette" (PDF). secured.goldleaf.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 16, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
4. "Louisiana primary election returns, October 20, 2007". electionresults.sos.louisiana.gov. Archived from the original on September 4, 2010. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
5. "Rep. Fred H. Mills Jr. (LA)". votesmart.org. Archived from the original on July 28, 2011. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
6. ""NACDS Lauds Louisiana Medication Therapy Management Law," July 15, 2010". pharmacynews.eu. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
7. Barrow, Bill (2010-12-14). "St. Martin lawmaker dons GOP garb: Party switch latest in Louisiana trend". Times-Picayune (Saint Tammany Edition). p. A2. Retrieved 2010-12-14.
8. "Ellington considers party switch". Monroe News Star, December 9, 2010. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
9. "Louisiana Senate District 22 special election returns". Louisiana Secretary of State. January 22, 2011. Retrieved November 6, 2015.
10. "Two qualify for House seat". Baton Rouge Morning Advocate. Retrieved February 19, 2011.
11. "Rep. Perry, Jonathan (Biography)". mobilelegs.com. Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved February 19, 2011.
12. Greg Hilburn (January 13, 2016). "Senate Labor chair won't support minimum wage increase". The Monroe News-Star. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
13. Greg Hilburn (August 7, 2018). "Sen. Mills: Let's make Medicaid more efficient". The Shreveport Times. Retrieved August 11, 2018.

Louisiana State Senate
Preceded by Troy Hebert	Louisiana State Senator for District 22 (Iberia, Lafayette, St. Landry, and St. Martin parishes) 2011 – present	Succeeded by Incumbent
Louisiana House of Representatives
Preceded by Sydnie Mae Maraist Durand	Louisiana State Representative from District 46 2008 – 2011	Succeeded by Mike "Pete" Huval