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AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE FOR ALL

Health care is a high priority issue important to the Gunnison Area League of Women Voters. For the past two years we have been working in study groups researching the state of health coverage in the Gunnison Valley, the State of Colorado, and across the US.

In June 2006, we began educating the public on health care by means of a forum in the Fred Field Western Heritage Center. Nearly 100 people attended this forum which featured Dr. John Tarr, a local physician who discussed the pending shortage of family practice physicians in the valley; Terry Bonney, patient advocate and practice manager who advocated for more insurance providers to create competition for Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield; Mark Ewing, former CB/Mt. CB Chamber of Commerce director who had been trying to create a Gunnison Country Community Health Organization; and Dr. Rocky White of Alamosa who is continuing to try to get the Legislature to pass a universal, single payer, Colorado state health insurance bill.
This year we have continued the education process as you can see in our announcement below about the BOCC resolution. We plan to hold another forum in June of 2008.

GUNNISON COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ADOPT RESOLUTION
As part of a growing grassroots movement to move health care to a universal coverage, single payer health care program, the Gunnison League with the help of Dr. Richard Gingery, Director of Health Care For All Colorado, made a presentation on January 29th to the BOCC about the merits of the proposal. On February 19th, the Gunnison County Board of Commissioners adopted a resolution in support of the Colorado Health Services Program - Single Payer Health Care.

The web sites below offer general information on health care, health care reform organizations and links to other websites of states working on universal health care programs.

Health Care for All Colorado

Health Care for All Colorado is a 501 (c)(4) nonprofit social welfare organization which began in 2001 in response to the increasing numbers of Coloradans who are not able to secure basic health care in our current health care system.  HCAC views health care reform as both a human rights issue and an economic necessity, advocating for the adoption of a single-payer system which ensures that all Coloradans have access to affordable and comprehensive health care services.

The Health Care for All Colorado link will take you to their web site.

This site offers an abundance of information with links to web sites of other states with programs similar to HCAC and links to web sites of states working on universal health care programs, definitions of universal health care and related terms, myths about universal health care and all kinds of articles on related topics. There is also a great slide presentation on this site.

Colorado's Blue Ribbon Commission

What is the Blue Ribbon Commission for Health Care Reform?
Created by the Colorado Legislature in 2006, the Blue Ribbon Commission for Health Care
Reform is charged with making recommendations for comprehensive health care reform in our state. The goal is to increase access to health care coverage and decrease costs for Colorado residents, with particular emphasis on the issues of the uninsured, underinsured and those at risk of financial hardship due to the costs of medical care. The Commission is required to make final recommendations to the General Assembly by November 30, 2007.

The Commission is charged with:

• Examining health coverage and reform models designed to ensure access to affordable coverage
  for all Colorado residents;
• Soliciting comprehensive reform proposals from interested parties;
• Selecting between three and five proposals for in-depth technical assessment by an independent contractor;
• Holding meetings around the state to solicit public input; and
• Completing a final report with recommendations to the General Assembly by November 30, 2007.

Four proposals are accepted:

On May 18 the Colorado 208 Commission for Health Care Reform selected four health reform proposals for modeling, reserving the 5th spot for their own consolidated proposal. The following 4 were chosen because they represent a philosophical spectrum:
#1] Service Employees International Union (no mandates)
#2] Colorado Association of Health Underwriters (individual mandate)
#3] Committee for Colorado Health Care Solutions (individual and employer mandate)
#4] Colorado Health Services Program - Single Payer

The Lewin Group will be modeling/evaluating these proposals for cost and access, and permitting one more opportunity for each group to make changes in consultation with Lewin. Please note: A summary of 19 federal and state studies of single payer since 1991, as well as HCAC's full single-payer proposal and a 500-word summary, can be viewed at: Health Care for All Colorado. Four task forces are being formed as an adjunct to the 208 Commission, representing Rural, Underserved, Providers and Business communities - to provide information to the Commission about issues specific to these groups.

Click to view a 1-page summary of the Lewin Group report of administrative savings with the Colorado Health Services Single Payer proposal; and a brief 1-page summary by the Lewin Group of its evaluation of 4 Colorado health care reform proposals. Only 1 of the 4 health care reform proposals evaluated by the Lewin Group was shown to insure everyone AND save money - the Colorado Health Services Single Payer Insurance.

5th Proposal
The Blue Ribbon Commission for Health Care Reform is writing their own 5th Proposal, also to be evaluated by Lewin. They are considering a 2-track system of public-private insurance with an individual mandate to purchase private insurance and a tax penalty for failure to do so - similar to the Massachusetts model. (See below: Massachusetts Health Care – Universal in Name Only)
Unfortunately, without strictly regulating private insurances, the experience in Massachusetts with an Individual Mandate is that even the most "affordable" private insurance premium is unaffordable for many - $660/month per family and $330/month per individual. These "affordable" policies tend to be high-deductible, high-copay stripped-down policies that do not provide adequate health or financial protection. Massachusetts Health Care - Universal in Name Only.

Click to read about Minnesota’s disappointing experience trying to legislate not-for-profit private insurances - how the insurers use creative bookkeeping and have taken control of the regulatory process.

It is important to let the 208 Commission and our legislators know that we want real systemic reform, not incremental reform that merely continues shifting costs without addressing a major cause of inflationary health costs - the high administrative costs of commercial insurers, who guarantee shareholder profits by insuring the healthy and excluding everyone else as a ‘pre-existing condition.’ Over 30% of our health care dollars go to wasteful administrative costs of private insurances - 20% administration, marketing and profit-taking, and another 12% administrative costs imposed by insurances on providers and hospitals. The CHS Single Payer Proposal calls for limiting overhead costs to 5%. Medicare has an overhead cost of 1.8%. More background information under "208 Commission."

Click to read about different views of reform, and participate in The Bell Policy Center Health Care Blog

About the Commission
Colorado has approximately 792,000 uninsured residents with nearly 180,000 of them children. Public opinion polls show concern about health care as the top issue for Americans. Coloradans, like most Americans, are anxious for solutions to the rising cost of health care and the growing number of people who cannot afford health insurance or who do not have adequate coverage.
The Blue Ribbon Commission for Health Care Reform was created by the Colorado Legislature in 2006. The Commission is charged with making recommendations for comprehensive health care reform with the goal of increasing health care coverage and decreasing costs for Colorado residents, with particular emphasis on the issues of the uninsured, underinsured, and those at risk of financial hardship due to the costs of medical care. The Commission is required to make final recommendations for comprehensive health care reform to the General Assembly by January 31, 2008.

The Commission's Guiding Principles

a. The Commission's mandate is to identify proposals that will increase coverage and reduce health care costs for Coloradans. The following principles guide its work:

b. Protect and improve the health status of all Coloradans.

c. Expand coverage of essential health care services for all Coloradans, with an emphasis on the uninsured and underinsured.

d. Align incentives to provide high-quality, cost-effective and coordinated care.
Support a system that is financially viable, sustainable and fair.
Provide opportunities for meaningful choice and encourage personal responsibility.
Emphasize wellness, prevention, health education and consumer empowerment.

The Colorado's Blue Ribbon Commission link will take you to the Blue Ribbon Commission page on the Colorado Government site.

Montrose LWV web site homepage

Montrose, Colorado has a chapter of Health Care for All Colorado (Uncompahgre Chapter). This site has a copy of the single payer pledge form which you can download, copy, sign for yourself and circulate. http://hcac.montrosehealth.org/

The Light Program

July 10, 2007 UPDATE

Mary Burt, Coordinator of the Gunnison County Immigrant Integration Grant sent us this report on July 10 about the LIGHT project:

Hi everyone! It's official- we have launched the Light Program.

The Light Program, named for former Gunnison County physician, Dr. Mason Light, is a collaborative program between Gunnison County Health and Human Services and participating private primary care providers working in Gunnison County.  Gunnison Valley Family Physicians, The Main Street Clinic and Dr. Sherman in Crested Butte have all agreed to participate. The program seeks to provide primary medical care to residents of Gunnison County who are uninsured (or underinsured for less than catastrophic coverage) at or under 185% of the federal poverty level, with a sliding fee scale and voucher. The program also serves those who do not have access to state and federal programs. This program is funded in part by a grant from The Colorado Trust Supporting Immigrant and Refugee Family Initiative (SIRFI) and private donations or public donations that do not restrict the use of this program by undocumented residents. Government funds can and will only be used to supplement the sliding fee scale for those residents who qualify for the use of government funding. The mission of this program is to provide voluntary, community based primary care services including high quality, cost effective health care to low-income residents of Gunnison County by promoting wellness, dignity, patient initiative and health care access.

The Light Program does not attempt to duplicate services available elsewhere in the community and will screen and assist clients in enrolling in healthcare programs for which they may qualify.

The Light Program is staffed by a paid coordinator; Jill Stahlnecker, who is housed in Public Health @ 641-0209.  Clients pay for a voucher, as available, on a sliding fee scale - no more than $20, and are responsible for making and keeping their own appointments with the participating providers. At this time there are a limited number of vouchers designated per person and currently, this program is limited to primary care appointments. Lab, pharmacy and x-ray referrals as well as referrals to non-participating providers are not covered and are client responsibility for payment in full.

We are very excited to have this program and hope we can see it evolve in a posititve way.

If you have questions, please contact Mary at Public Health, 225 N. Pine St., Ste. E, Gunnison; Phone: 970-209-5476, Fax: 970-641-8346, Email: mary@mattb.net

Meeting the Needs of the Uninsured in Gunnison County
Access to Care
A project of the Gunnison County Immigrant Integration grant
(The Colorado Trust, SIRFI Initiative)

LWV IMMIGRATION STUDY

After a lengthy consensus process, the national League has formulated a new position on Immigration.

LWVUS Immigration Position

The League of Women Voters believes that immigration policies should promote reunification of immediate families; meet the economic, business and employment needs of the United States; and be responsive to those facing political persecution or humanitarian crises. Provision should also be made for qualified persons to enter the U.S. on student visas. All persons should receive fair treatment under the law.

The League supports federal immigration law that provides an efficient, expeditious system (with minimal or no backlogs) for legal entry of immigrants into the U.S.

To complement these goals the League supports federal policies to improve economies, education, job opportunities, and living conditions in nations with large emigrating populations.

In transition to a reformed system, the League supports provisions for unauthorized immigrants already in the country to earn legal status

The League supports federal payments to impacted communities to address the financial costs borne by states and local governments with large immigrant populations.

Criteria for Legal Admission to the U.S.

The League supports the following criteria for legal admission of persons into the United States:

Family reunification of spouses or minor children with authorized immigrants or citizens;
Flight from persecution or response to humanitarian crises in home countries;
Economic, business and employment needs in the U.S.;
Education and training needs of the U.S.;
Educational program opportunities; and
Lack of a history of serious criminal activity.

Administration and Enforcement

The League supports due process for all persons, including the right to a fair hearing, right to counsel, right of appeal and right to humane treatment.

The League supports:

Improved technology to facilitate employer verification of employee status;
Verification documents, such as status cards and work permits, with secure identifiers;
Significant fines and penalties for employers who hire unauthorized workers;
Improved technology for sharing information among federal agencies;
More effective tracking of individuals who enter the United States; and
Increased personnel at borders.

The League also supports programs allowing foreign workers to enter and leave the U.S. to meet seasonal or sporadic labor needs.

Unauthorized Immigrants Already in the U.S.

In achieving overall policy goals, the League supports a system for unauthorized immigrants already in the country to earn legal status, including citizenship, by paying taxes, learning English, studying civics and meeting other relevant criteria. While policy reforms, including a path to legal status, remain unachieved, the League does not support deporting unauthorized immigrants who have no history of criminal activity.