Ken Paxton details childhood eye injury during Dallas USHBC event
Ken Paxton cites childhood eye injury in Dallas speech on government healthcare delays
U.S. Senate candidate Ken Paxton shared a story in Dallas about how a childhood eye injury and government healthcare delays shaped his conservative views on medicine.
DALLAS - U.S. Senate candidate Ken Paxton spoke in Dallas on Monday at an event hosted by the United States Hispanic Business Council (USHBC), where he shared a personal childhood story about how a government health care delay shaped his views on the system.
What happened to Ken Paxton's eye?
During a conversation moderated by USHBC President and CEO Javier Palomarez, Paxton recounted sustaining a severe eye injury at age 12 while waiting for a friend's mother after a church youth group. Other children were tossing small, hard berry-like objects when one struck his eye.
Paxton described how his initial visit to a base hospital emergency room—which he noted was government health care—resulted in him seeing a corpsman who provided basic first aid and sent him home with a patch. Due to bureaucratic delays and a priority-based referral system, it took three and a half days before he was finally seen by an ophthalmologist.
DALLAS, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 09: Texas Republican Senate candidate, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton attends the first day of the 2026 Republican National Convention at the American Airlines Center on September 09, 2026 in Dallas, Texas. U.S. President
"That made me realize, I wish I could have been at a private system where I would have gotten treatment immediately, and I probably would have been just fine," Paxton said, adding that the delay turned a minor incident into a major medical crisis.
The prolonged ordeal required Paxton to spend 12 days flat on his back in a hospital, during which he lost half his body weight and missed three months of school. He noted that the injury required five surgeries, permanently impaired his vision, ended his athletic pursuits, and disqualified him from serving in the armed services.
Paxton used the personal experience to criticize government-run health care systems as inefficient, rationing-based, and inadequate for timely care.
What's next:
The appearance is part of the USHBC's "In Dialogue: Texas" series, which features back-to-back individual discussions with Senate candidates.
Paxton appeared in Dallas on Monday, while opponent James Talarico is scheduled to speak on September 30 in Edinburg. Both candidates are addressing key issues including the economy, inflation, immigration, energy, and data centers.
The Source: Information in this article is from Ken Paxton's conversation with USHBC President and CEO Javier Palomarez in Dallas.