By Margie Ball Cook, RN, Ph.D. Colorados seniors are benefiting as never before from prescription drugs that are saving and prolonging their lives and uplifting the quality of those lives. And believe it or not, a federal program Medicare Part D has played a pivotal role in that success. Part D saves U.S. taxpayers billions of dollars, stimulates investment in breakthrough pharmaceutical research, and is immensely popular among some 30 million Americans who take advantage of it. Its not often you can say that about any government effort, and Medicares singularly successful Part D program represents a distinct exception. Enacted…
Category: Opinion - Part 5
By Linda Gorman Medicaid expansion would limit access to care for the significant fraction of the currently uninsured who would otherwise be eligible for federal premium subsidies under Obamacare. It raises costs for state taxpayers, increases costs for people who are hospitalized and prevents state insurers from collecting millions of dollars in federal subsidy money. Naturally, the Colorado Hospital Association favors it. The proposed expansion would allow able-bodied working age adults with incomes under 138 percent of the federal poverty level to enroll in Medicaid. A significant fraction of able-bodied adults between 19 and 54 with incomes below 138 percent…
By Dr. Tom Gottlieb The recent Time Magazine Special Report by Stephen Brill Why Medical bills Are Killing Us demonstrates a series of narratives that describe problems in our health care system. The article focuses on the cost of health care services. Brill blames cost problems on insurance companies, medical equipment manufacturers, hospitals (both for-profit and nonprofit) and pharmaceutical companies. He says that excess costs by and large are not related to physician and patient behaviors. Brill suggests that real solutions might be related to lowering the age for Medicare eligibility and implementing a single-payer system. He further states that…
By Sam Cole As the gun debate heats up in Colorado, it is victims of domestic violence who could be most affected by its outcome. On Monday, a Senate panel approved a bill that would require domestic violence offenders to relinquish their guns if a restraining order had been filed against them. When an offender has easy access to guns, there is nothing more dangerous for a victim. In a fit of rage or the heat of the moment, a womans life can end in an instant. There are 300 million guns in our country, enough for every man, woman…
By Cari Frank An email with the subject line Patients Prefer High Cost Care came through my inbox a few weeks ago. It was spurred by a recent study in Health Affairs revealing that patients would typically select a higher cost service like an MRI over a lower cost CT scan even after being educated on the marginal difference between the results. As a part of CIVHCs Colorado All Payer Claims Database team, Im working to develop publicly available consumer information on cost and quality for health care services. The primary purpose of the patient focused information (planned for release…
By Linda Gorman New results from Arkansas suggest that Colorado officials who favor Medicaid expansion may be able to negotiate a better deal for both low-income people and state taxpayers. Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe has negotiated an alternative to the standard Medicaid expansion offered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Obamacare. Health and Human Services has agreed that Arkansas can pay premiums for commercial insurance purchased through the states health insurance exchange using the federal funding that would have gone to expand Medicaid. The program will extend commercial coverage to adults earning up to 138 percent…
By Dr. Greg Mann The next time you read news reports about rising health care costs, consider this: Some 39,000 Coloradans sought treatment last year at hospital emergency rooms for toothaches and other dental problems. Such unnecessary and expensive emergency room care affects all of us by contributing to health care costs. An estimated $2 million to $5 million could be saved each year in Colorado by preventing needless emergency room visits through timely dental care. Most hospital emergency rooms simply arent equipped or staffed to provide the ideal treatment for dental problems. Typically, the emergency room can offer a…
By Sofia Griffin High school isnt the place where the worlds or even our own countrys problems are the main topic in the hallways. Sometimes I wonder why my teachers always told me that they were going to prepare me for the outside world, but failed to explain crucial problems in our society. For example, besides my personal struggles with health care, I never had to think about our health care system in high school. Get Healthy SLV has been educating the freshmen health class of the Alamosa High School about access to health issues. Our activities range from lectures…
By Dr. Christian Thurstone Because Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper appointed me to serve on a task force charged with recommending to the state legislature how to implement a constitutional amendment making recreational marijuana use legal in this state, I have become more aware of potential harms to public health and safety that Coloradans should know about. In the interest of full disclosure, I have not hidden my thoughts about marijuana legalization. It is wrong not only for the health and well-being of Colorado, but for our nation and I have every reason to believe many people will learn this the…
By Donna Smith It isnt often that I learn a new word in the health care system discussion, but this week I did. Churning. I was at a meeting here in Colorado where I have taken on a new role in advocating and administering for a publicly financed, universal, single-payer system with Health Care for All Colorado.And the definition of churning I learned is a sad commentary on a system that still allows access to care based on inequality of coverage that leaves so many people suffering and tens of thousands dying in America every year. Churning is the policy…