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Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Lee talks about refocusing and technical education.
Scott Broden, USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee

Democrat Karl Dean told Tennessee’s county mayors Friday he’ll seek Medicaid expansion as the state’s next governor in contrast to Republican Bill Lee.

“That is a quality of life issue,” Dean said at a Tennessee Association of County Mayors meeting. “That is a life or death issue.”

Lee, chairman of Lee Company, which has 1,200 workers, did not talk about Medicaid expansion and was unavailable for comment after the event. 

U.S. Senate Democratic nominee Phil Bredesen also spoke to the county mayors, but his Republican opponent Marsha Blackman was unable to attend.

Medicaid issue divides candidates 

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Democratic gubernatorial nominee Karl Dean says public education, economic development and accepting Medicaid expansion are his top priorities.
Scott Broden, USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee

When it came to the gubernatorial candidates, only Dean said the Tennessee General Assembly made a “big mistake” by turning down $4 billion to expand Medicaid through a proposal from Republican Gov. Bill Haslam.

“It’s now being spent in 34 other states,” said Dean, a former two-term mayor of Nashville. “It was a political decision.” 

Lee and the three Republicans he defeated in the GOP primary have said Medicaid expansion is unaffordable

“Tennesseans should have access to quality health care, it’s how they get that access that people differ on,” Lee said in an April 17 Tennessean story. “Expanding Medicaid is not the way to approach that.  Federal dollars with strings attached is not free money, and we’ve been down that path before in Tennessee, and it didn’t work.”

Dean suggested the $4 billion could have prevented 11 hospitals from being closed in small towns in rural Tennessee.

The loss of a hospital also means the loss of a major employer and the ability to attract businesses and people to a community, Dean said. 

“People are not getting preventive care,” said Dean, who noted that Vice President Mike Pence accepted Medicaid expansion funds as the former governor of Indiana.

Helping struggling rural communities

Lee and Dean talked about the importance of public education.

“Every kid in Tennessee ought to have an education,” said Lee, adding that the state needs more trade schools that provide skills needed in the workforce.

“Public education helps kids succeed in life,” said Dean, who agreed that vocational and technical schools are needed for students not interested in pursuing a four-year college degree. 

The gubernatorial candidates also talked about the struggling rural communities.

Dean said Tennessee needs to bring broadband to the rural communities to help them attract industries and people who’d like to work from home. The former Nashville mayor said rural communities need more of the state’s economic development efforts. 

Lee talked about helping farmers pursue innovative ways to serve the emerging food industry and develop new markets, “and not just rely on what’s happening federally.”

More: Bill Lee wins Republican nomination for governor of Tennessee

More: Karl Dean wins Democratic nomination for Tennessee governor in landslide

More: Immigrants ‘are not criminals’ pastor tells Bredesen at Murfreesboro event

Reach Scott Broden through email at sbroden@dnj.com, phone at 615-278-5158 or on Twitter @ScottBroden.

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