Beto O’Rourke addresses ETX water, hospital issues at Tyler town hall meeting

TYLER, Texas (KETK) — Hundreds of East Texans attended a town hall meeting hosted by former congressman, Beto O’Rourke, on Sunday to voice their concerns about several topics including water issues and hospital shortages.

Officials said around 887 people attended O’Rourke’s town hall meeting at the Holiday Inn Ballroom in Tyler where he tackled many issues that upset East Texans. O’Rourke acknowledged the developing concern of East Texans possibly losing their water to a growing Dallas-Fort Worth area.

After a proposed sale of water from the Northeast Texas Municipal Water District’s (NETMWD) was announced, some East Texans criticized the possible distribution to the North Texas area.

Residents are worried about losing a large water supply which could have an effect on local habitats and residential use water. O’Rourke explained why the water sale is important and what it could mean for East Texans.

“I was listening to people here in East Texas who told me about a recent meeting where they learned there is a proposed plan from the governor to take the water resources from East Texas and pipe them to the metroplex,” O’Rourke said. “Potentially draining aquafers, draining local habitats and maybe draining drinking water from those who depend on it.”

O’Rourke also addressed the continued closure of rural hospitals in Texas. According to the Texas Tribune, the State of Texas saw the most rural hospital closures between 2010 and 2020 in the nation. Some of these closures have been attributed to financial instability. O’Rourke commented on how a continued hospital closures could effect rural Texas communities.

“Bring back these local hospitals that have closed down, especially in rural communities, making it harder for East Texans to get the care and health that they need to lead the best possible lives in front of them,” O’Rourke said.

Other topics that were covered at this town hall meeting include:

• Medicaid
• Abortion rights
• Raising minimum wage
• THC laws

O’Rourke is on a journey of conducting more than a dozen of these town hall meetings across the state where he will continue to answer resident’s questions about what is going on in their communities.