1 00:00:02,960 --> 00:00:03,760 Hi noon. 2 00:00:03,760 --> 00:00:05,440 My name is Dale Fry, and I'm running to be 3 00:00:05,440 --> 00:00:07,440 your next Texas State Senator for District 30. 4 00:00:07,440 --> 00:00:10,080 It's a big, massive area that's all of around here, 5 00:00:10,160 --> 00:00:12,400 stretches up to the North Texas border, out to Wichita 6 00:00:12,560 --> 00:00:15,360 Falls and almost down to uh Fort Worth, anyways. 7 00:00:15,360 --> 00:00:16,640 Uh, to tell you who I am. 8 00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:18,320 My wife and I came back down here to Texas 9 00:00:18,320 --> 00:00:20,000 to be with our father in the later years of 10 00:00:20,000 --> 00:00:21,600 his life as he bad with cancer. 11 00:00:21,600 --> 00:00:23,360 Uh this is going to segue to one of the 12 00:00:23,360 --> 00:00:25,920 many reasons I'm running for office because I really want 13 00:00:25,920 --> 00:00:28,240 to try to fix our broken health care system down 14 00:00:28,240 --> 00:00:28,720 here. 15 00:00:28,720 --> 00:00:30,720 One of the first warning signs I've got to see 16 00:00:30,720 --> 00:00:32,480 how bad things are is meeting a friend of mine, 17 00:00:32,480 --> 00:00:34,800 a woman named Kenneth who owns her own LLC, who 18 00:00:34,800 --> 00:00:37,200 is a health care provider, and she's ranting to me 19 00:00:37,200 --> 00:00:38,800 over a cup of coffee about how she has to 20 00:00:38,800 --> 00:00:41,840 drop her Medicaid recipients because she says the rates are 21 00:00:41,840 --> 00:00:43,600 just not, the money's just not there anymore. 22 00:00:43,600 --> 00:00:45,520 The rates have not been adjusted since long before the 23 00:00:45,520 --> 00:00:48,000 pandemic, and inflation's killing her in this sector. 24 00:00:48,000 --> 00:00:50,160 It is so frustrating because I know that we Texas 25 00:00:50,240 --> 00:00:51,760 are one of the few states in the country that's 26 00:00:51,760 --> 00:00:54,240 not opted into the Medicaid Expansion Program. 27 00:00:54,240 --> 00:00:56,640 A program we all spend money into through our federal 28 00:00:56,640 --> 00:00:59,360 taxes, and that goes to places like California and New 29 00:00:59,360 --> 00:01:00,960 Jersey, but not back here. 30 00:01:00,960 --> 00:01:04,160 All the meanwhile, Kennet and so many other healthcare providers 31 00:01:04,160 --> 00:01:06,080 are having to drop their Medicaid recipients in order to 32 00:01:06,080 --> 00:01:06,880 stay in business. 33 00:01:06,880 --> 00:01:08,240 This affects people's lives. 34 00:01:08,240 --> 00:01:11,440 It affects my father's, my father, my father- in-law's life, much 35 00:01:11,440 --> 00:01:14,160 like how uh, especially as a retired public school teacher. 36 00:01:14,160 --> 00:01:16,400 I was shocked to find out how little amount of 37 00:01:16,400 --> 00:01:18,560 money that public school teachers make in retirement. 38 00:01:18,560 --> 00:01:20,400 I was shocked to find how little amount of money 39 00:01:20,400 --> 00:01:22,080 public school teachers make before they retire. 40 00:01:22,080 --> 00:01:24,080 Vicky, another friend of mine, told me how much money 41 00:01:24,080 --> 00:01:26,320 she made before she retired as a public school school 42 00:01:26,320 --> 00:01:26,800 teacher. 43 00:01:26,800 --> 00:01:29,600 And I said, My God, Vicki, that's similar money I 44 00:01:29,600 --> 00:01:31,600 made in my first job at a college. 45 00:01:31,760 --> 00:01:34,240 Guys, we need to support our public schools. 46 00:01:34,240 --> 00:01:36,160 We need to stand up for our students and our 47 00:01:36,160 --> 00:01:38,720 teachers, and the school voucher program that is being pushed 48 00:01:38,720 --> 00:01:40,880 by the governor should not be passed. 49 00:01:40,880 --> 00:01:42,640 If it does, it will be the final nail in 50 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:45,200 the coffin for our youngsters and for our public school 51 00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:46,080 teachers. 52 00:01:46,080 --> 00:01:48,720 This voucher program is not school choice. 53 00:01:48,720 --> 00:01:51,040 It is something that takes money away from our public 54 00:01:51,040 --> 00:01:51,960 education system. 55 00:01:51,960 --> 00:01:53,680 It is built specifically for that. 56 00:01:53,680 --> 00:01:56,160 That is the will of Tim Dunn and Ferris Wilkes, 57 00:01:56,160 --> 00:01:57,840 the real people pulling the strings behind us. 58 00:01:57,840 --> 00:01:59,280 My name is Dale Frey, and I'm going to be 59 00:01:59,280 --> 00:02:01,480 your next Texas State senators to stand it to stand 60 00:02:01,480 --> 00:02:04,120 against the voucher program and to try to fix the 61 00:02:04,120 --> 00:02:06,280 broken health care system in any way I can. 62 00:02:06,280 --> 00:02:07,160 Thank you 63 00:02:08,840 --> 00:02:10,040 All right, great. 64 00:02:10,040 --> 00:02:12,040 Thank you for your introduction.