By Lauren Means | Photo courtesy Gayle Jordan for Senate
Who is Gayle Jordan?
Gayle Jordan is your typical Tennessean. She has raised a family, lives on a farm, has owned a small business, and is concerned about the future of our state. If you dig a little deeper, you will see that her concerns are also like those of many Tennesseans: healthcare, education, and the opioid crisis. Jordan is not content just discussing these issues. She is a woman of action and is running for the Senate seat in Tennessee’s 14th District, which is comprised of portions of Bedford, Lincoln, Marshall, Moore, and Rutherford counties in Middle Tennessee.
The Issues
Healthcare
In this area, healthcare is a major concern and it is a two-fold problem. First, the lack of access to healthcare in this area means thousand of citizens are living without proper care for their health conditions or going into debt trying to get the help they need. Second, the healthcare industry employs 10.9% of the population in district 14, making it the third leading industry in the district. The closing down of healthcare facilities is leading to an increase in unemployment which is compounding the already high rates of poverty in this district.
In a campaign
| Bedford Co. | Lincoln Co. | Marshall Co. | Moore Co. | Rutherford Co. | |
| Uninsured % | 16.8% | 11.4% | 11.8% | 11.2% | 10.5% |
| Poverty Level % | 14.7% | 16.7% | 13.2% | 10.9% | 10.3% |
In a recent interview with the Daily News Journal, Jordan explains her stance, “Until and unless we address our working uninsured, we will continue to lose our rural hospitals. Besides the humanitarian crisis, the economic impact on our county economies is tragic. Not only do we lose the jobs in the hospitals, we lose the local businesses that depend upon the hospital.”
With rural health clinics closing down and access to health insurance declining, something must be done to help our citizens get the care they need while keeping local businesses open and employing people who live in these areas. Jordan is proposing tackling both of these issues with one solution: expanding Medicaid in Tennessee. “I believe we need to expand Medicaid in Tennessee so our working folks can have healthcare at no expense to the state budget. We have already paid into the Affordable Care Act with our federal tax dollars. We have lost $5.4 billion over the years because we haven’t brought those tax dollars back to Tennessee.”
Education
Jordan, who raised her four children in Rutherford County public schools, is committed to preserving public schools and the quality of education our children are receiving. “The students of today are our leaders of tomorrow, and we all benefit when we invest in education,” she states on her campaign website. As an advocate for public education, she believes “Public funding belongs in public education”. Jordan also supports teachers and the teachers’ union. In an
Opioid Crisis
The latest estimates indicate as many as 300,000 Tennesseans are misusing drugs, with 82,000 addicted to drugs, according to Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Commissioner Marie Williams. In addition to Governor Haslam’s $30 million plan dubbed “TN Together,” Jordan states “we also need to consider the legalization of cannabis, of which I am in favor.” She states “with middle Tennesseans suffering from long-term pain and so many battling the opioid addiction, it’s past time we had a conversation about compassionate healthcare and medicinal alternatives.”
Infrastructure
As an avid bicyclist, Jordan had seen firsthand the need for maintaining the district’s bridges and roads. She further explains to the DNJ, “We cannot continue to hear that we have a ‘budget surplus’ while our roads remain unrepaired and dangerous.” She also wants to see expansion of broadband access to rural communities that currently lack accessibility.
Rational, Reasonable, Right
Gayle Jordan has a three step process on how she would govern for her constituents:
- Is it Rational?
- Does this legislation solve an identified problem in the State of Tennessee?
- Is it Reasonable?
- Does this legislation make the very best use of your tax dollars and mine?
- Is it Right?
- Does this legislation do the most good for the largest number of people with the least negative impact for the fewest number of people?
In addition to her core concerns, Jordan is steadfast in her beliefs about equality and respect for ALL citizens, Constitutional rights (from women’s rights to the second amendment), veterans’ rights, and religious freedoms.
