By Dr. Jay Want I do a fair amount of work in payment and delivery system reform in various communities around the country.I have been speaking to physicians about change coming for over a decade.If you have done any of this work, you may have had this common experience: that change is hard and people have to have a really good reason to change the status quo.I admit it sometimes seemed to me that change would never come. But lately I have noticed some of the conversations are different.I have been in a couple of meetings recently where audience physicians…
Category: Trends In Health Care - Part 8
By Katie Kerwin McCrimmon FORT COLLINS Roger Mondragon visited the ER 22 times in two years, but still felt lousy and neglected. It was the only place I knew to go, said Mondragon, 22. When Im in pain, Im stressed. Im frustrated and angry. Developmentally delayed and suffering from several ailments including kidney disease, severe back pain, migraines and respiratory problems, Mondragon used to dial an ambulance whenever his anxiety or pain escalated. In a single month, he says he called an ambulance eight times. Born with a fractured disk and severe asthma, Mondragon spent the first few months of…
By Kevin Vaughan I-News Network Lucero Barrios is Latina and a new mother circumstances that place her squarely in a group of people affected by a shocking reality in Colorado: A Hispanic baby born in this state is 63 percent more likely than a white baby to die in the first year of life. And Latinos arent alone the disparity is even more stark for Colorados African Americans, who experience an infant mortality rate three times that of Caucasians. The gap in theinfant mortality rate is just one measurement by which the states largest groups of ethnic and racial minorities…
By Joe Sammen Infographic by Sarah Mapes As the Colorado Legislature began its 69thsession earlier this month, issues affecting rural Coloradans were at the forefront. A number of legislators expressed their commitment to working to find solutions around familiar rural concerns, including scarce water resources, protecting agricultural lands and issues around oil and gas production. But perhaps no other political issue will affect rural Colorado in thefuture as much as our changing health care landscape. Gov. John Hickenlooper recently announced Colorados intention to expand Medicaid eligibility in 2014 for our poorest citizens, creating unprecedented access to health insurance in our…
By Sarah Mapes Colorado ranks 38th in the country for kids who see a dentist regularly. One quarter of all Coloradans are children and only about 3 percent of these 1.2 million children have seen a dentist by age 1. Tooth decay is five times more common than asthma and four times more common than early childhood obesity. Research shows that good oral health is critical to a childs long-term success in life. Unfortunately, the data are not promising for Colorado kids. Tooth decay is almost entirely preventable, and yet around half of our Kindergartners suffer from it. Oral health…
By Dr. David Downs Medical science has advanced at a remarkable pace. We can now replace worn joints and diseased heart valves, open clogged arteries and identify cancers before they become untreatable. We can see into the center of the body with remarkable detail using CT scanners, MRI machines and other technologies all without pain or discomfort. These and many other modern medical miracles are generally viewed as a great benefit to the health of those for whom they are available. And in the American spirit of newer, better and faster, we have taken to these services avidly. It is…
By Katie Kerwin McCrimmon Two of Colorados largest insurance companies refuse to pay for their clients to see independent advanced practice nurses in urban areas even though some patients want to see them and the care would cost less. Advanced practice nurses say the insurance companies, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado and Rocky Mountain Health Plans, are protecting doctors in a turf war instead of focusing on whats best for patients and allowing free market choice. Nicole Snelgrove, 35, has insurance through Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado and has chosen to spend more than…
By Katie Kerwin McCrimmon AIDS killed scores of David Lipsons close friends, an adored partner and even his own brother. One of the first men in the nation to be tested for HIV back in 1984, David Lipson received the same terrible test results that ensnared so many of his friends. Then 26 and living in Los Angeles, Lipson learned he was HIV positive and his doctor told him he would die within two years. HIV infection rates are down 45 percent in Denver from 2005. Rates could decrease further if more men engaged in safe sex. Source: Dr. Mark…
By Katie Kerwin McCrimmon While some states are still wrestling over whether to build their own health exchanges, Colorado is playing hurry-up offense, tackling major policy decisions including the biggest one on the horizon: how to pay for the online health insurance marketplace. Now a reality across the country as the Affordable Care Act steams toward full implementation, health exchanges are supposed to make it easier for individuals and small business owners to choose and buy health insurance plans. Some people will qualify for government subsidies to help them afford insurance while exchanges will funnel others into public health insurance…
By Dr. Ted Norman Here we are, billions of political ads later, facing the same challenges from before the election. In health care, now that the Supreme Court ruled the Affordable Care Act constitutional and it is unlikely to be repealed, the work starts on implementation and discussion about health insurance exchanges. In simple terms, exchanges are brokers for insurances companies set up by government or private companies. In Colorado, for example, an exchange board has been developed to solicit bids from insurance companies that meet a specified level of benefits and cost. The general public can then go to…