Al Gross in 2020 AK Senatorial race
On Jobs:
Raise the minimum wage; defend collective bargaining rights
I'll be an advocate for our students and labor force and for creating good-paying jobs here in Alaska.
That starts by raising the minimum wage and defending collective bargaining rights for our workers and unions.
Source: 2020 Alaska Senate campaign website DrAlGrossAK.com
Jun 7, 2020
On Social Security:
Strengthen security of pension plans
Gross announced his plan that would strengthen the security of pension plans and secure them into the future. "The plan starts with the Butch Louis plan, offering low interest government loans. It expands the authority to PBGC. It stress tests the
existing plans, and it charges higher rates on plans that have riskier investments," said Gross. The International Union of Painters and Allied Trades Local 1959 endorsed Gross because he is making pension reform a main platform of his campaign.
Source: KTVF Fairbanks Webcenter-11 on 2020 Alaska Senate race
Jun 2, 2020
On War & Peace:
Military is important but need to attract other businesses
[Dan Sullivan] purports to support the military but Alaska has gotten military money for years and years and will continue to long after
Dan's gone because of our strategic location in the world. There's a lot more to Alaska than the military--the military is important to Alaska, but we need to attract other businesses.
Source: Anchorage Press on 2020 Alaska Senate race
Jun 2, 2020
On Crime:
More funding for tribal & rural public safety
Gross says that tribes and local governments aren't being given adequate resources to combat high rates of crime. "The VPSO program is terribly underfunded and understaffed. And there are many villages that have no public safety officer at all, in any
sense of the word. I support Native sovereignty for public safety issues, and I totally respect the tribal governments' authority. And as a Senator I'd really work hard to support that, but certainly it needs more funding than it's getting now."
Source: KOTZ Radio 720 AM on 2020 Alaska Senate race
Apr 23, 2020
On Energy & Oil:
Promote clean energy for rural Alaska; rejoin Paris accord
Gross says that he wants to bring federal resources into rural Alaska to expand clean energy programs. "There are wind and solar and tide opportunities throughout rural Alaska that are not being utilized and it should be," Gross said. "And as a Senator,
I'd do everything I could to lower energy costs in rural Alaska." As a Senator, he wants to make sure the country is part of the Paris Climate Agreement again.
Source: KOTZ Radio 720 AM on 2020 Alaska Senate race
Apr 23, 2020
On Abortion:
Will defend right to choose & reproductive healthcare
I'll defend a woman's right to choose and fight attacks on safe,
affordable reproductive healthcare.
Source: 2020 Alaska Senate campaign website DrAlGrossAK.com
Nov 20, 2019
On Education:
Make college more affordable & accessible
As the father of college students and recent graduates, I also know how important a college education can be and how cost-prohibitive higher education is for many Alaskans.
I will fight to make college more affordable and accessible for all Alaskans and I support earlier tracking into trade schools.
Source: 2020 Alaska Senate campaign website DrAlGrossAK.com
Nov 20, 2019
On Energy & Oil:
Climate change a threat: Alaska literally losing villages
I know what a serious threat climate change is to Alaska, where we are literally losing villages to the ocean. We can grow our economy while taking major steps to protect our land and water and reducing carbon emissions. In Alaska, we have enormous
potential to develop wind, hydroelectric, solar, and tidal power as new energy sources. I oppose the Pebble Mine project that threatens Bristol Bay, our natural salmon fishery and the livelihood of those who live there and fish those waters.
Source: 2020 Alaska Senate campaign website DrAlGrossAK.com
Nov 20, 2019
On Government Reform:
End Citizens United; get dark money out of politics
We must fix the corrupt campaign finance system that undermines our democracy and prohibits our politicians from being held accountable when they stop working for us.
I will fight to end Citizens United and get dark money out of politics.
Source: 2020 Alaska Senate campaign website DrAlGrossAK.com
Nov 20, 2019
On Health Care:
System is broken; start with Medicare and public option
Our healthcare system is broken. As a doctor, I've seen firsthand the struggles Alaskans and small businesses face with the prohibitively expensive cost of quality healthcare. In Alaska, we pay more for healthcare than any other state in the country.
As your senator, I will first balance Medicare so that it works and is fair for both patients and for providers. We must allow Medicare to negotiate directly with the pharmaceutical industry for competitive savings.
We must offer Medicare as a public option, on the health care exchange for people to buy at cost, which will be markedly less expensive than what people are paying for health insurance today, without compromising access.
This is a public option and it can and will work. And, this will help grow the economy and invite new business opportunities into our state.
Source: 2020 Alaska Senate campaign website DrAlGrossAK.com
Nov 20, 2019
On Health Care:
Take on big pharma on prices & opioid epidemic
I'll take on big pharma to decrease drug prices and hold them accountable
for the opioid epidemic that has destroyed the lives of too many Alaskans.
Source: 2020 Alaska Senate campaign website DrAlGrossAK.com
Nov 20, 2019
On Jobs:
Raise the minimum wage; defend collective bargaining
I'll be an advocate for our labor force.
That starts by raising the minimum wage and defending collective bargaining rights for our workers and unions.
Source: 2020 Alaska Senate campaign website DrAlGrossAK.com
Nov 20, 2019
On Principles & Values:
I fought grizzly bears, so I'm ready for Washington
I've taken on some tough challenges. I took out a loan to buy a fishing boat at age 14 and have provided medical care to patients in the depths of the wilderness. I've prospected for gold and sailed through gales in the Pacific Ocean.
And I've faced off with multiple grizzly bears and am still here to tell the tale. So, I'm ready for anything Washington tries to throw at me. And I will always be there to fight for Alaska.
Source: 2020 Alaska Senate campaign website DrAlGrossAK.com
Nov 20, 2019
On Health Care:
Increase access, lower prescription prices
Increasing access to affordable care and lowering the cost of prescription drugs are two of his top priorities when it comes to fixing health care, according to Dr. Gross.
He's also committed to achieving a more efficient, coordinated delivery system; supporting physician hospital ownership; and facilitating new business opportunities through economic growth and competition in the industry.
Source: 2020 Alaska Senate race endorsements by OrthoPAC
Oct 1, 2019
On Jobs:
First political campaign in Alaska to unionize
A handful of campaigns are unionizing with a promise of better pay and insurance for campaign workers. That trend landed in Alaska on Labor Day when Al Gross announced that his campaign would also be unionizing. Gross says his campaign will be the
first unionized campaign in Alaska when it unionizes with the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades. "As we grow our economy into the future, Alaska must treat its workers with fairness and respect all along the way," he said.
Source: The Midnight Sun on 2020 Alaska Senate race
Sep 3, 2019
On Principles & Values:
Independent endorsed by state Democratic Party
The Alaska Democratic Party has endorsed independent candidate Dr. Al Gross for the U.S. Senate. "Dr. Gross is a born and bred Alaskan who holds Alaskan values close. He has an understanding of Alaska and a commitment to our people that we have never
seen from Dan Sullivan," said Casey Steinau, Alaska Democratic Party chair. "To Dr. Gross, Alaska comes first - always. It is a testament to his competence, his policies, and his dedication to the state that he has won our early endorsement."
Source: KTVA-11 on 2020 Alaska Senate race
Sep 3, 2019
On Energy & Oil:
Opposes Canadian mine in Alaska operation EPA would allow
The proposed Pebble mine in Bristol Bay is the epicenter of crony capitalism. After a meeting between Gov. Dunleavy and President Trump, the Environmental Protection Agency announced it is doing away with a protection that the Canadian Pebble mine
operators viewed as an obstacle. Scientific evidence shows that the Pebble mine footprint will cause irreversible damage to our wild Alaska salmon population. President Trump, Gov. Dunleavy, and the corporate interests from Canada don't seem to care.
Source: Anchorage Daily News on 2020 Alaska Senate race
Aug 29, 2019
On Health Care:
Health care costs holds back economy, especially in Alaska
Gross referred to the number of people moving out of the state, the decreased state budget, shrinking higher education system. "I really think healthcare in Alaska is holding back the economy," said Gross. "We've got the most expensive healthcare
system in the entire world, and in the entire country, and it's prohibitively expensive for companies or individuals to move to the state to start new businesses because healthcare is triple the national average here in Alaska."
Source: KRBD.org Ketchikan radio on 2020 Alaska Senate race
Aug 20, 2019
On Health Care:
Led AK ballot initiatives to expand Medicaid
Gross was an orthopedic surgeon in Juneau, but left his practice in 2013 to earn a master's degree in public health, and to champion what some might call socialized medicine for all Alaskans. He led two ballot initiatives--one to
enshrine Medicaid expansion, as provided by Gov. Bill Walker's executive order, and the other to start setting prices for medical services in order to regulate insurance companies. Neither made it to the ballot.
Source: MustReadAlaska.com on 2020 Alaska Senate race
May 14, 2019
Page last updated: Jul 26, 2020