Dr. Lauer earned two Bachelor of Science degrees in Animal Husbandry and Poultry Science from Clemson University in Clemson, South Carolina. She then pursued an MD from Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia. She chose to also pursue an MPH in Epidemiology from Emory University Rollins School of Public Health with her thesis work being on survival disparities in colorectal cancer in rural areas.
She completed family medicine residency at the Lancaster General Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program in Lancaster, PA. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians and is also board certified in Hospice and Palliative Medicine, as well as Integrative and Holistic Medicine. She spent several years as the medical director for the Essentia Hospice programs in Northern Minnesota and Wisconsin, prior to relocating to Yakima, Washington in 2017.