Healthcare Archive

Healthcare_Archive

The following contains 2007-2009 LWV-LPC activities related to Healthcare

US Healtcare Positions 2009.  CO Healthcare Legislation 2009.  LWVUS Healtcare Positions 2009.  LWVCO Healthcare Actions 2008-2009.  La Plata Healthcare 2008-2009.  Member Letters.  News Items.  Healthcare References.  Past Events 2009.  Past Events 07-08.

US Healthcare Positions 2009

*12/24/09 WSJ:Senate Passes Sweeping Health-Care Bill 60-39 Vote Is Landmark in Effort to Expand Insurance Coverage By GREG HITT and JANET ADAMY
WASHINGTON -- The Senate approved sweeping health-overhaul legislation on Thursday, a landmark moment for White House-led efforts to expand insurance coverage to more than 30 million Americans. The bill, approved by a 60-39 vote, would deliver on a long-promised Democratic goal of extending coverage to nearly every American, and would represent the biggest expansion of the federal safety net since the 1965 creation of Medicare, the health-insurance program for the elderly and disabled...

*11/29/09 NY Times: Editorial A Modest Public Plan
Senate Democrats barely mustered enough votes to start debating their reform bill, and some senators who voted to allow debate have said flatly that they will not support the final bill if it retains its public option clauses. If they mean what they say, their defection could make it extremely hard to overcome a Republican-led filibuster...

*11/22/09 NY Times: Senate Votes to Open Health Care DebateBy DAVID M. HERSZENHORN and ROBERT PEAR
WASHINGTON -- The Senate voted on Saturday to begin full debate on major health care legislation, propelling President Obama's top domestic initiative over a crucial, preliminary hurdle in a formidable display of muscle-flexing by the Democratic majority. The 60-to-39 vote, along party lines, clears the way for weeks of rowdy floor proceedings that will begin after Thanksgiving and last through much of December.
The Senate bill seeks to extend health benefits to roughly 31 million Americans who are now uninsured, at a cost of $848 billion over 10 years...

*11/8/09 Durango Herald: U.S. House passes health-care reform Voting on overhaul bill extended late into night in Washington by David Espo AP Special Correspondent
WASHINGTON - In a victory for President Barack Obama, the Democratic-controlled House narrowly passed landmark health-care legislation Saturday night to expand coverage to tens of millions who lack it and place tough new restrictions on the insurance industry. Republican opposition was nearly unanimous. The 220-215 vote cleared the way for the Senate to begin debate on the issue that has come to overshadow all others in Congress...

10/24/09 Reuters: Obama declares swine flu a national emergency By Patricia Zengerle
WASHINGTON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama has declared 2009 H1N1 swine flu a national emergency, the White House said on Saturday. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday that swine flu has become widespread in 46 of the 50 U.S. states, a level comparable to the peak of ordinary flu seasons but far earlier and with more waves of infection expected...

*10/29/09 Click HR3962 to read a 4-page summary of the new house bill for health care reform. Click health bill comparisons for a comparison of the pending healthcare legislation.

*10/7/09 Wall Street Journal: CBO Says Health Bill Would Cost $829 Billion Over 10 YearsBy JANET ADAMY
The latest health-overhaul bill from the Senate will cost $829 billion over a decade and provide insurance coverage to 91% of U.S. residents, according to an analysis released Wednesday by the Congressional Budget Office. According to the CBO, the bill would reduce the federal budget deficit by $81 billion over 10 years...

*9/28/09 California Health Line:Markups Continue on Senate Finance Panel's Health Care Reform Bill
On Friday, the Senate Finance Committee continued mark-ups for its draft health reform bill. According to CongressDaily, committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) offered an optimistic outlook for the bill. He said, 'We have debated, we have questioned, we have prodded at times, and we have discussed -- and discussed,' adding, 'Most important, we continue to move forward'...

*9/16/09 Wall Street Journal:Baucus Unveils $856 Billion Health-Care Legislation Bill Has No Public Option, Finds Lukewarm Support Among Other Senators By GREG HITT, PATRICK YOEST and MARTIN VAUGHAN
WASHINGTON -- Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus formally unveiled a 10-year, $856 billion bill that would extend health insurance to tens of millions of Americans but that found lukewarm support among other key senators, indicating changes to the measure are in store...

* 9/2/09 Denver Post:Dems absolute overhaul of health care system may turn up D.O.A. By Karen E. Crummy
Congress returns to Washington next week to battle over health care reform, but the Democrats' plan for a massive overhaul of the system looks like a long shot, experts say. Not only do polls show the majority of voters oppose sweeping reform, it's becoming less likely that Democrats, especially in the U.S. Senate, have enough votes to push a bill through...

*7/16/09 White House blog:More Stable and Secure Health Care For Seniors Posted by Terrell McSweeny
Vice President Biden and members of the Middle Class Task Force just concluded a health care reform discussion in Alexandria, Virginia. Along with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, White House Office of Health Reform Director Nancy-Ann DeParle, and Barry Rand, CEO of AARP, the Vice President led a discussion with older Americans on how reforming health care will lower costs, cut waste, create stability and improve quality for them.

*7/2/09 Durango Herald: Health plan has public option Dems idea also has lower cost By David Espo AP Special Correspondent
WASHINGTON + Democrats on a key Senate Committee outlined a revised and far less costly health-care plan Wednesday night that includes a government- run insurance option and an annual fee on employers who do not offer coverage to their workers. The plan carries a 10-year price tag of slightly more than $600 billion, and would lead toward an estimated 97 percent of all Americans having coverage, according to the Congressional Budget Office, Sens. Edward M. Kennedy and Chris Dodd said in a letter to other members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

*6/15/09 NY Times: Text: Obama's Speech on Health Care Reform Following is a text of President Obama's prepared address on health care reform to the American Medical Association, as released by the White House.
Make no mistake: the cost of our health care is a threat to our economy. It is an escalating burden on our families and businesses. It is a ticking time-bomb for the federal budget. And it is unsustainable for the United States of America.

* 6/8/09 Reuters: Ailing Kennedy drafts vision of healthcare reform By Thomas Ferraro
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama's quest to overhaul U.S. healthcare rests in part on the frail shoulders of Senator Edward Kennedy, a champion of the cause now in the second year of fighting deadly brain cancer. But whether the Democratic-controlled Congress ultimately passes legislation -- and what it looks like -- may depend on how much time and energy the ailing 77-year-old Kennedy can devote to it in coming months. Conservative Republicans and centrist Democrats are ready to chip away at the more liberal elements of his proposal such as a government-run health plan.

*4/29/09 Durango Herald: World Health Organization Raises Swine Flu Alert LevelBy LIZ ROBBINS
The World Health Organization raised the alert level of the fast-spreading swine flu virus on Wednesday afternoon, indicating that a "pandemic is imminent," on the day that a Mexican toddler who had been hospitalized in Houston became the first person to die from the disease on United States soil. Dr. Margaret Chan, the director general of the organization, said that the "phase 5" alert out of a possible 6 levels signified that at least two countries have spread the virus by human to human contact, and that the highest phase 6 was probably imminent.

*3/5/09 New York Times: Obama's Remarks at the White House Health Care Forum
At the fiscal summit that we held here last week, the one thing on which everyone agreed was that the greatest threat to America's fiscal health is not Social Security, though that's a significant challenge; it's not the investments that we've made to rescue our economy during this crisis. By a wide margin, the biggest threat to our nation's balance sheet is the skyrocketing cost of health care. It's not even close.
Click NYT3/5/09health to read the rest of President Obama's address.

*3/2/09 White House Blog: On a snowy Washington day, President Obama announced Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius as Health and Human Services Secretary-designate and Nancy Ann DeParle as Director of the White House Office for Health Reform.
Click whitehouse3/2/09 to read the full announcement.

*2/26/09 Building the Foundation for Health Care Reform U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders - Vermont
In a dramatic step forward on health reform, Senator Bernie Sanders and House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (D-S.C.) today introduced legislation to provide primary health care for all Americans. About 56 million Americans lack adequate access to a doctor or dentist in their communities, according to Sanders. The legislation would build on recent momentum in the economic stimulus bill and quadruple funding authority for health centers. "This is one of the most significant steps forward that we have seen in decades in addressing the primary health care crisis in our country," he said. The Access for All Americans Act would authorize $8.3 billion annually at the end of five years to expand the number of Federally Qualified Health Centers from 1,100 to 4,800.
Click Sanders1-26 to read more.

*HEALTH CARE - US Government 2009 Agenda
click whitehouse.gov healthcare to read the 2009 healthcare agenda.

CO Healthcare Legislation 2009

*11/24/09 Durango Herald: Feds analyze impact of bill Sebelius gives state report on health measure by Dale Rodebaugh
Almost half of all Coloradans will be affected by state-specific benefits of Democrats' proposed health-care reform now being debated in the U.S. Senate, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius said Monday.
In Colorado, about 2.3 million of the state's 4.9 million residents would benefit from the proposed reform, the assessment says. But some categories appear to cover the same constituents. For example: b About 826,000 residents without insurance and 345,000 residents who have nongroup insurance could get coverage through a health-insurance exchange...

*8/18/09 HealthReform.gov: HOW HEALTH INSURANCE REFORM WILL BENEFIT COLORADO
LOWER COSTS FOR RESIDENTS OF COLORADO
INCREASE YOUR CHOICES: PROTECTING WHAT WORKS AND FIXING WHAT'S BROKEN
ASSURE QUALITY, AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE FOR AMERICANS

*8/6/09 Healthcare for All Colorado (HCAC):Public Option a Shadow of its Original Intent by Michele Swenson
...public option has been diluted + testament to the influence of the monied lobbies. It is a rule of negotiation not to start with compromise, and, instead to make the best case for reform upfront. The best case for comprehensive coverage and cost containment is a single public payer model with full free choice of private providers -- from that position, compromise would at least be a stronger public option.

*4/7/09 Durango Herald: Hospital fee bill passes Senate by Joe Hanel Herald Denver Bureau
Gov. Bill Ritter's main health-care bill has passed the Senate. House Bill 1293 would charge hospitals a per-patient fee, which the state government would pool and use to collect matching funds from the federal government. The combined money would be used to put more uninsured people in government health-insurance programs and to increase payments to doctors who care for the poor.
Click DH4/7health to read the story.

*4/7/09 Durango Herald: Single-payer system clears vote /But future uncertain for health-care reformby Joe Hanel Herald Denver Bureau
DENVER - The House has given initial approval to a single-payer health-care plan, but the bill's long-term prognosis is not certain. House Bill 1273 passed on a voice vote Monday evening. It will need to pass one more recorded vote to get out of the House. Four Democrats and two Republicans were absent Monday.
Click DH4/7health to read the story.

*3/31/09 Healthcare For All Colorado: The Colorado Guaranteed Health Care Act (HB09-1273)
Sponsors: Rep. John Kefalas & Sen. Joyce Foster
House cosponsors: Representatives Green, Frangas, Court, Fischer, Hullinghorst, Labuda, Levy, Miklosi, Pace, Vigil, Apuan, McCann, Ryden, Schafer, and McGihon.
Senate cosponsors: Senators Bacon and M. Carroll.
The Colorado Guaranteed Health Care Act takes an important step toward the goal of assuring that everyone in Colorado has access to health care; that the quality of health care is improved; and that the costs of health care are reduced. House Bill 1273 represents comprehensive health care reform.

The bill will establish the Colorado Health Authority and the Colorado Health Care Trust Fund. During the first phase, the Authority will be funded through gifts, grants, and donations. Consequently, HB 09-1273 has no fiscal impact. At the end of the development phase, the Authority must certify to the Colorado Legislature that all health care funding has been secured and that all essential components including funding waivers, means-based fee schedules, benefits schedules, automated medical records systems, computerized repayment systems and provider reimbursement agreements are in place. The system will take effect upon final approval of the legislature.

The health care system that will be created by the Authority will fund health care for everyone in Colorado. Funding will be through utilizing waivers to draw in current federal Medicare and Medicaid funds; through use of existing state funds; and through means-based fees (premiums) from employers and individuals. Medical services will continue to be privately delivered. Everyone in Colorado, rich and poor, young and old will have complete freedom to select their own doctors and hospitals. Significant savings can be realized through provision of primary and preventive care, through simplified medical billing, through bulk pricing of drugs and medical equipment, and through elimination of the 20 to 30% health insurance overhead cost for profit and administration.

House Bill 09-1273 will assure that everyone in Colorado has full access to primary and preventive care, inpatient care, outpatient care, emergency care, prescription drugs, durable medical equipment, long-term care; mental health services, dental services, substance abuse treatment, chiropractic services, vision care and correction and hearing services and hearing aids.

The House Business Affairs and Labor Committee approved HB 09-1273 and forwarded the bill to the House Appropriations Committee, which will vote on the Bill on Friday, April 3rd. Nearly 60 organizations have endorsed the Colorado Guaranteed Health Care Act including medical associations, community organizations, religious organizations and businesses. Click HB09-1273 for more information and to see the list of endorsing organizations.

LWVUS Healthcare Positions 2009

*10/8/09 LWVUS: Click here for Rural Health Care: Where the Needs Are Great and the Resources Are Few by Task Force Member Doris Isolini Nelson (LWVCA).
The inadequacy of our fragmented, uncoordinated health care system is particularly acute in the rural areas of the United States. The National Rural Health Association notes in Health Reform Priorities for Rural America1 that health reform that expands health insurance coverage is necessary + rural Americans are both more uninsured and underinsured than urban Americans + but the greater crisis is the lack of access to health care. Coverage does not equal access...

*5/21/09 LWVUS: A Short History of Major Changes in the U.S. Health Care System since 1994: Costs, Coverage and Quality by Doris Isolini Nelson, a member of the LWVUS Health Care Education Task Force.

*5/21/09 LWVUS: From SCHIP to CHIPRA by Robin Lane, a member of the LWVUS Health Care Education Task Force.

*5/21/09 LWVUS: What is Driving the Rapid Rise in U.S. Health Care Costs? By Rhondda Tewes, a member of the LWVUS Health Care Education Task Force

*3/24/09: click healthcare reform to read a letter regarding Healthcare Reform sent to the U.S. Senate by Mary Wilson, President, LWV-US.

LWVCO Healthcare Actions 2008-2009

*9/26/09 LWVCO League Day presentation:Understanding Health Care Financing and Reform by Irene Aguilar, MD

*5/5/08: LWV-Colorado has recently joined with Health Care for All Colorado in a grassroots effort to achieve guaranteed, affordable access to high quality health care for all, specifically a single payer system. Other large organizations in the new coalition are the CO Nurses Association and the Colorado Education Association. See the website healthcareforallCO for details on the bills supported, lobbying efforts, January 31 rally at the capitol and outreach efforts.
LWVCO is also lobbying for bills in the Legislature for expanding coverage and addressing cost controls.

Linda Mahan
LWVCO Board director
LWV Larimer County, CO Health Care Team chair

*1/31/2008: The 208 Blue Ribbon Healthcare Commission presented its final report to the Colorado General Assembly today.

• To view the 208 Commission Final Report, click 208 final report
• To view the 11/19/2007 Summary recommendations, click 208 report

*1/9/2008: The LWVCO Board voted to endorse efforts of Health Care for All Colorado (HCAC) in working for single payer financed universal health care that is affordable and guaranteed. The League will join with HCAC and other organizations such as the Colorado Nurses Association and the Colorado Education Association to call upon the Colorado Legislature to move Colorado towards a fair and sustainable system of health care reform.

La Plata Healthcare 2008-2009

* 5/31/09 Durango Herald: Consultant looks to improve local health care By Dale Rodebaugh Herald Staff Writer
Like a swimmer dipping a toe to test the water, consultant Julie Thompson is getting an idea of what a plunge into providing primary health care will entail in La Plata County. I've talked to 80 to 85 people, but I'm certainly not done, Thompson said Tuesday, two months into an 18-month contract. Input from the community is part of the project and will help determine what recommendations I make to the Community Health Advisory Council.

*5/28/09 Durango Herald: Structure put in place for board New setup for health department aims for equal representation by Katie Burford Herald Staff Writer
Commissioners for La Plata and Archuleta counties backed away from a proposal to seat themselves on the board for the San Juan Basin Health Department, and instead opted for a board that, like the current board, will have two commissioners and five other members.
Though no actual appointments were made during their joint meeting Wednesday, it was agreed that for the first year, La Plata County Manager Shawn Nau and Archuleta County Administrator Greg Schulte will hold at-large positions on the board.

*4/9/09 Durango Herald: Revisions draw crowd San Juan Basin reorganization topic of special meeting by Katie Burford Herald Staff Writer
Some proposed changes to the board of San Juan Basin Health Department met with fierce opposition Wednesday in a special meeting before La Plata County Commissioners. State legislation passed last year requires all counties to take a fresh look at their public health agencies and make decisions about how to structure them in the future.
Click DH4/9health to read the story.

*4/5/09 Durango Herald: Healthy partnership: San Juan Basin Health collaborates with community to provide more than just doctor care by Lynn Westberg, the director of San Juan Basin Health Department.
Although advances in public health are credited with adding 25 of the 30 years of life ex¬pectancy gained in the 20th cen¬tury, public health still suffers from an identity crisis.
Click DH4/5/09health to fread the article.

*3/20/09 Durango Herald: Group hires health-care manager- Wisconsin woman to help solve shortage by Dale Rodebaugh Herald Staff Writer
An experienced health-care manager from Wisconsin has been hired for 18 months to find a solution to the shortage of primary-care providers in La Plata County. Julie Thompson, a division administrator at a health clinic in Minocqua, Wis., is scheduled to begin work the last week of this month. Thompson, 55, moved to Durango recently with her husband, Scott, a retired school teacher. She was hired through a grant from the Colorado Health Foundation to help a volunteer steering committee in La Plata County.
Click dh3/20 to read more.

*3/10/09 www.healthreform.gov: 30,000 Americans Participate in Health Care Community Discussions
Top Concerns of Health Care Community Discussions Participants include:

• Cost of Health Insurance (31%)
• Cost of Health Care Services (24%)
• Lack of Emphasis on Prevention (20%)
• Difficulty of Finding Health Insurance Due to Pre-Existing Conditions (13%)
• Quality of Care (12%)
  Click community health care responses to read more.
  Click CO sample community discussion to read a discussion report from Arapahoe County, Colorado 80016.

  *1/6/09: The results of the Dec 29 La Plata County Community Health Care Discussions have been summarized and sent to Senator Daschle as requested for the Obama-Biden Transition Project.

• Click transition project survey to view a participant survey of the La Plata session.
• Click 12-29-08 report for a detailed statement of the transition project report to Sen Daschle.
• Click additional comments for comments gathered after the Dec 29 meeting.

*12/30/08 Durango Herald: Durangoans voice their support for single-payer care Forum provides input for Obama transition team By Katie Burford Herald Staff Writer
click healthcare community session to read about the La Plata County healthcare input session held 12/29/08.

Letters from our Members

*8/30/09 from LWVLPC Healthcare Chairperson (Jill Patton) to Durango Herald HEALTH CARE INSURANCE REFORM - TWO WAYS TO HELP BEND THE COST CURVE
The single most important fact - and it is a fact - about the current health care reform debate is that the status quo is unsustainable. If reform does not take place, more millions of Americans will lose their health insurance and the rest of us will continue to see our premiums rise to levels where we can only afford high deductible plans which mean we rarely seek care when we need it. Costs will continue to rise and we will have a poorer, unhealthier population which will further erode our ability to compete with other developed countries not saddled with this situation...,

*7/24/09 from LWVLPC Legislative Chair to local Durango media Healthcare Reform
While it is encouraging that Senate and House committees are beginning to seriously consider health care reform legislation, it is critical that the U.S. Congress takes action and passes real health care reform in the next few months...

*3/6/09 LWV-LPC Healthcare Program Representative: The Colorado Nurse Practice Act (NPA) is undergoing the sunset review process which means it is subject to change by the Colorado Legislature.
Summary of Consensus reached during this review process:
NPs and APNs, after meeting educational requirements which include a masters degree and course work in pharmacology, and a further total of 3600 hours (about 2 years) of working under the guidance of a physician or of a physician and a qualified NP or APN, will be allowed to write prescriptions in their field of expertise.
Click Alert - ADVANCED PRACTICE NURSING IN COLORADO COMPROMISED 3/6/2009 to read more on this subject.

*11/29/08: to read a letter from the League of Women Voters of La Plata County to the Durango City Council regarding the potential halt in funding of the La Plata County Health Care Clinic, click health facility

*Feb 2008: The following Healthcare Survey Summary, Taking the Pulse of Healthcare, author: Debra Bennett-Woods, appeared in the Feb 2008 Greeley/Weld VOTER, click survey

*11/28/07: Status Letter on Healthcare from LWV - Colorado - Linda Mahan, click LWVCO Healthcare

*9/7/07: Upcoming JSI Community Input Session on Healthcare - Jill Patton, click Letter to the Editor September 7

News Items

*12/20/09 NY Times: Negotiating to 60 Votes, Compromise by Compromise by Robert Pear
WASHINGTON -- Thirty million people without health insurance stand to gain coverage under a deal announced on Saturday by Senate Democrats. To get the 60 votes needed to pass their bill, Democrats scrapped the idea of a government-run public insurance plan, cherished by liberals, and replaced it with a proposal for nationwide health plans, which would be offered by private insurers under contract with the government...

*12/9/09 Wall St Journal: Senators Strike Health Deal By GREG HITT and JANET ADAMY
WASHINGTON -- Senior Senate Democrats reached tentative agreement Tuesday night to abandon the government-run insurance plan in their health-overhaul bill and to expand Medicare coverage to some people ages 55 to 64, clearing the most significant hurdle so far in getting a bill that can pass Congress.
Liberals dropped the public insurance plan that was a central plank of the Democrats' health bill in favor of a more limited alternative, following intense pressure from a small group of Democrats who had insisted for months that it was a deal-breaker. While disputes over abortion coverage and other issues remain, Democrats appeared a whisker away from having enough votes to overcome Republican opposition and pass a sweeping health overhaul in the Senate...

*11/30/09 NY Times Essay: To Curb Repeat Hospital Stays, Pay DoctorsBy SANDEEP JAUHAR, M.D.
A recent study in The New England Journal of Medicine found that one in five Medicare patients discharged from the hospital was readmitted within a month. One in three was readmitted within three months...
To curb the costs, Congress and the Obama administration are considering bonus payments to hospitals with low readmission rates and penalties on those with high rates. But these incentives are misdirected. Hospitals do not hospitalize patients; doctors do...

10/27/09 NY Times: Democrats Divided Over Reid Proposal for Public Option By DAVID M. HERSENHORN and ROBERT PEAR
WASHINGTON -- Senate Democrats voiced deep disagreements on Tuesday over the idea of a government-run health insurance plan, suggesting that the decision by the majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada, to include a public plan in major health care legislation had failed, at least initially, to unite his caucus...

*10/22/09 NY Times: Senate Majority Leader Reid Leaning Toward `Public Option' for Insurance By Robert Pear AND David M. Herszenhorn
After more than a week of deliberations, the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, is leaning toward including a government-run insurance plan in a health care bill he will soon take to the Senate floor, Democratic senators said Thursday...

*10/7/09 about.com: Baucus bill would reduce deficit by $81 billion over the next decade. by Faiz Shakir
The Wonk Room's Igor Volsky has produced a helpful chart breaking down the costs of the Baucus bill before and after it was amended...

* 10/2/09 NY Times:Health Care Conversations
Share your thoughts and reply to others' about the health care debate. Click on one of the boxes below to participate in a conversation about that topic. The boxes are sized according to the number of comments posted about each topic over the previous 24 hours. You can also mouse over the silhouettes to see a sampling of recent comments...

*9/22/09 Wall Street Journal:Senators Start Work on Health Bill Baucus Proposes Limits on Medical-Cost Deductions, Drops Proposed Tax on Clinical Labs By MARTIN VAUGHAN, GREG HITT and JANET ADAMY
WASHINGTON + Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus has proposed new limits on itemized deductions for medical expenses in order to pay for changes to his health-overhaul plan as the panel moves toward a vote. In one key change, Mr. Baucus scaled back an excise tax on high-cost health-insurance plans so that it would affect fewer people. But Mr. Baucus is proposing to raise the tax to 40% from 35%...

*8/15/09 NY Times: Why We Need Health Care Reform By BARACK OBAMA
OUR nation is now engaged in a great debate about the future of health care in America. And over the past few weeks, much of the media attention has been focused on the loudest voices. What we haven't heard are the voices of the millions upon millions of Americans who quietly struggle every day with a system that often works better for the health-insurance companies than it does for them...

*8/6/09 NY TimesThe Town Hall Mob by Paul Krugman

*8/4/09 Durango Herald: Sen. Michael Bennet backs government-run health-care plan Wants two options to compete by Joe Hanel Herald Denver Bureau
DENVER - U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet supports creating an optional government-run health insurance plan as part of the health-reform bill the Senate is considering, he said Monday.
Bennet, D-Colo., also wants to look at limiting malpractice lawsuits, he told a group of doctors and nurses at St. Joseph Hospital in Denver...

*7/31/09 NY Times: Health Care Realities By PAUL KRUGMAN
At a recent town hall meeting, a man stood up and told Representative Bob Inglis to keep your government hands off my Medicare. The congressman, a Republican from South Carolina, tried to explain that Medicare is already a government program -- but the voter, Mr. Inglis said, wasn't having any of it. It's a funny story -- but it illustrates the extent to which health reform must climb a wall of misinformation.

*7/29/09 Durango Herald: Group eyes Medicare savings Negotiation an attempt to overhaul health care by David Espo and Erica Werner
WASHINGTON - A bipartisan group of senators agreed tentatively Tuesday on a plan to squeeze an additional $35 billion out of Medicare over the next decade and larger sums in the years beyond, said congressional officials, a step toward fulfilling President Barack Obama's goal of curbing the growth of health-care spending.
Under the plan, an independent commission would be empowered to recommend changes in Medicare annually, to take effect automatically unless Congress enacted an alternative. In addition to saving money, the proposal is aimed at turning the program for those ages 65 and older into one that more clearly rewards quality, officials said.

* 7/21/09 NY Times: Challenge to Health Bill: Selling Reform By DAVID LEONHARDT
WASHINGTON -- What's in it for me? On the subject of health care reform, most Americans probably don't have a good answer to the question. And that, obviously, is a problem for the White House and for Democratic leaders in Congress. Current bills would expand the number of insured -- but 90 percent of voters already have insurance. Congressional leaders say the bills would cut costs. But experts are dubious. Instead, they point out that covering the uninsured would cost billions.

*7/15/09 NYTimes The Caucus:Senate Committee Approves Health Care Bill By David M. Herszenhorn
Voting on strict party lines, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee approved a bill on Wednesday to revamp the nation's health care system, as Democrats said that the legislation held the promise of more universal health coverage and more effective and affordable medical care while Republicans argued that the measure was unaffordable and would lead not to better care but to the denial of it.

* 6/4/09 Huffington Post: Obama, Senate Dems Consider Public Health Care Option With A Trigger by Sam Stein The Obama administration and Senate Democrats are debating a health care reform outline that will insist upon a public option for insurance but leave open the possibility for it to be kicked in via triggers.
A trigger would pave the way for public option to come into place only after certain market conditions are met -- mainly if private insurance companies are unable to achieve various metrics for coverage within a certain time frame. The proposal would placate many of the private health care actors who consider a public plan the first step towards a single-payer system. Progressives, however, view it as reform in name and not substance.

* 5/31/09 Durango Herald: Consultant looks to improve local health care By Dale Rodebaugh Herald Staff Writer
Like a swimmer dipping a toe to test the water, consultant Julie Thompson is getting an idea of what a plunge into providing primary health care will entail in La Plata County. I've talked to 80 to 85 people, but I'm certainly not done, Thompson said Tuesday, two months into an 18-month contract. Input from the community is part of the project and will help determine what recommendations I make to the Community Health Advisory Council.

* 5/31/09 New Yorker: The Cost Conundrum What a Texas town can teach us about health care. by Atul Gawande
McAllen has another distinction, too: it is one of the most expensive health-care markets in the country. Only Miami--which has much higher labor and living costs--spends more per person on health care. In 2006, Medicare spent fifteen thousand dollars per enrollee here, almost twice the national average. The income per capita is twelve thousand dollars. In other words, Medicare spends three thousand dollars more per person here than the average person earns.

*5/15/09 Denver Post: An insider's view on health care reform Opinion By Blaine Petersen
As I read the various health care reform proposals, I know from my experience in the health care sector that none of the reform proposals will work.
Everyone keeps talking around the issues, but no one seems to address some of the fundamentals that need to be fixed before we can even talk about reform.
I have spent 27 years in the health care industry. I have worked in the government, for hospitals, for HMO and insurers, for physician groups, and many other related entities. From my insider's perspective, let me tell you a few things that need to be fixed before we can even talk about reform.
The cost of health care like any other business is made of up of the total cost of the product times the number of products used. In the U.S, we have a problem with both the total cost of the health care product and the number of times each product is used.

*5/12/09 Durango Herlad: Health groups offer $2T in savings Economists say move would create breathing room to uninsured in U.S. by Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar and Philip Elliott Associated Press Writers
WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama's plan to provide medical insurance for all Americans took a big step toward becoming reality Sunday after leaders of the health-care industry offered $2 trillion in spending reductions over 10 years to help pay for the program.

*4/15/09 NY Times: As Pills Treat Cancer, Insurance Lags Behind By ANDREW POLLACK
Chuck Stauffer's insurance covered the surgery to remove his brain tumor. It covered his brain scans. And it would have paid fully for tens of thousands of dollars of intravenous chemotherapy at a doctor's office or hospital. But his insurance covered hardly any of the cost of the cancer pills the doctor prescribed for him to take at home. Mr. Stauffer, a 62-year-old Oregon farmer, had to pay $5,500 for the first 42-day supply of the drug, Temodar, and $1,700 a month after that.

*4/11/09 Yahoo News: No strength in numbers for America's uninsured By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON + If the uninsured were a political lobbying group, they'd have more members than AARP. The National Mall couldn't hold them if they decided to march on Washington.
But going without health insurance is still seen as a personal issue, a misfortune for many and a choice for some. People who lose coverage often struggle alone instead of turning their frustration into political action.

*3/31/09 PBS: Click Sick Around America to watch the PBS video investigating the stories of Americans whose leves have become a quest to find and keep health insurance.

*3/26/09 Durango Herald:House approves Ritter's hospital-fee measure- Proponents say plan would cover 100,000 uninsured Colo. residents by Joe Hanel Herald Denver Bureau
DENVER - The House has passed the biggest health-care bill that Gov. Bill Ritter has presented since he was elected. The state Senate will get the bill next. It charges hospitals a fee, which will be matched by the federal government, in order to insure more people and increase payments to doctors.
click dh3/26/09hea to read the story.

*3/20/09 NY Times: A Tumor at the Heart of Medicare By MARK LANGE
San Francisco: GENERATING efficiency in the health-care market will be one of President Obama's greatest challenges. To do this, he will have to create meaningful competition between drug companies, and between public and private plans. Congress's attempt at market-driven health care offers good instruction in what not to do.
click NYT3-20hea to read the article.

*3/12/09 the New England Journal of Medicine:Health Care and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act By Robert Steinbrook, M.D.
On February 17, 2009, four weeks after his inauguration, President Barack Obama signed into law a $787 billion economic stimulus package.1,2 The economic impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, as the measure is officially known, will not be apparent for months. Nonetheless, the bill's approval -- even before any new senior officials of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) were in place -- has jump-started the Obama administration's plans for health care.
Click NJM3-12-09hea to read the article.

*3/10/09 NY Times: Wal-Mart Plans to Market Digital Health Records System By Steve Lohr
Wal-Mart Stores is striding into the market for electronic health records, seeking to bring the technology into the mainstream for physicians in small offices, where most of America's doctors practice medicine.
Click NYT3/10/09hea to read more.

*3/10/09 San Francisco Chronicle: Report questions stimulus bill health IT moneyBy ERICA WERNER, Associated Press Writer
PDT WASHINGTON: Billions of stimulus dollars meant to spur doctors to switch to electronic record-keeping may not be enough to do the job, a private consulting firm said Monday.
The stimulus bill that President Barack Obama signed last month contained $19 billion for health information technology, including $17 billion for incentives and penalties to encourage doctors and hospitals to abandon paper record-keeping and go high-tech beginning in 2011.

But particularly for doctors in small practices, the high cost of installing electronic records systems could outweigh the incentives and penalties for failing to comply, the new analysis said.
click SFC3-10hea

*3/9/09 Philadelphia Inquirer:An ER alternative By Carol Ann Campbell KAISER HEALTH NEWS
Emergency room doctors noticed the difference. Many of their "super user" patients weren't coming around much anymore. These troubled people, struggling with chronic illness - and often with homelessness and addiction - routinely appeared at Camden hospitals, racking up huge bills and straining already crowded emergency rooms.
click PI to read the story.

*3/8/09 Washington Post: Health Sector Has Donated Millions to Lawmakers By Dan Eggen Washington Post Staff Writer
Health insurers and drug makers have showered members of the 111th Congress with millions in campaign contributions over the last four years, with a special focus on leaders who will play major roles in shaping health-care legislation, according to a study to be released tomorrow.
Health insurers and their employees contributed $2.2 million to the top 10 recipients in the House and Senate since 2005, while drug makers and their employees gave more than $3.3 million to top lawmakers during that period, according to an analysis of federal elections data by Consumer Watchdog, a California-based advocacy group.
Click WPost3/8/09health to read the rest.

*3/6/09 New York Times: In Divide Over Health Care Overhaul, 2 Major Unions Withdraw From a Coalition By ROBERT PEAR
WASHINGTON -- Two labor unions have pulled out of a broad coalition seeking agreement on major changes in the health care system.
Click NYT3-6-09health to read the story.

*3/5/09 Denver Post: Cities taking charge on health care By John Hickenlooper and Shepard Nevel
Health care in Colorado and nationally has reached a tipping point, nudged by unsustainable cost increases and an economic crisis that has exacerbated the challenges of uninsured and underinsured, critical provider shortages, stark disparities based on income and ethnicity, fragmentation of services, and a payment system that discourages quality and efficiency.
Our nation's cities are disproportionately impacted by these challenges, as home to large concentrations of low-income, elderly, special needs and historically underserved populations. But as "crucibles of creativity," in the words of urban historian Peter Hall, our cities and metropolitan regions also have the capacity and responsibility to play an important role in developing and driving the solutions to our health care crisis.
Click dp3/5/09hea to read more.

*2/10/09 New York Times: Electronic Health Records: How to Spend the Money Wisely By Steve Lohr
But in a letter delivered Tuesday to the White House and Congressional offices, 50 of the nation's leading experts in electronic health records -- most of them physicians themselves -- warned that "an historic opportunity to achieve quality and efficiency gains through health information technology will be lost," unless the government channels the spending carefully. Click health records to read all about it.

*1/19/09 Durango Herald: Pricey procedure Doctors asked to go digital with medical records by By Kevin Freking Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON - Dr. Cecil Wilson is in no rush to convert his nearly 5,000 patient charts from paper to digital. Wilson, an internist in Winter Park, Fla., says converting records for his 30-year practice would cost more than he wants to pay and would take time away from his patients. "Those kind of challenges make it difficult for doctors like myself to say, 'OK this coming year, I'm going to invest an additional $30,000 to $40,000 in a new system,'" said Wilson, a trustee for the American Medical Association.
click DH1/19/09 to read the article.

*1/18/09 Durango Herald: Thank You from the La Plata County Commissioners Commissioners thankful for successful healthcare meeting
Click DH1/18 to read the full letter

*1/15/09 Durango Herald: House gives approval for expansion of popular health-insurance plan by Kevin Freking Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON - Making a down payment on President-elect Barack Obama's promise of universal health coverage, the House voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to expand government-sponsored insurance to 4 million more children in working families with income too high to qualify for Medicaid.
Click 1/15/09DH to read the full story.

*1/15/09 Durango Herald: Health council to receive grant Two committees will use money to hire coordinator by Dale Rodebaugh Herald Staff Writer
Volunteers who took on the task of finding a long-term answer to primary health care in La Plata County almost two years ago - when a major provider pulled out - have received a grant to hire a professional project coordinator.
The Health Services Steering Committee and the Citizens Health Advisory Council are scheduled to receive $189,378 from the Colorado Health Foundation to cover a three-quarters-time position for 18 months, Missy Rodey, who will oversee the grant, said Wednesday. Click DH1/15/09 to read the full story.

*1/3/09 New York Times: Mr. Bush's Health Care Legacy Editorial published 1/2/09
This page has criticized the Bush administration's weak performance on many important health care matters: its failure to address the problem of millions of uninsured Americans or stem the rising costs of health care, its refusal to expand eligibility for the State Children's Health Insurance Program, its devious maneuvers to cut Medicaid spending, its support of unjustified subsidies for private health plans, to name a few.

click NYT1/3/09 to read more

*12/11/08 New York Times: Daschle Will Lead Health Care Overhaul By ROBERT PEAR,
Calling an overhaul of the health care system a basic element of his administration's economic recovery programs, President-elect Barack Obama on Thursday presented former Senator Tom Daschle as his choice to become secretary of health and human services and to lead efforts to secure "affordable, accessible health care for every single American."
click NYT12-11-08 for the full story.

*12/2/08 Rocky Mountain News, Cancer strikes poor Coloradans more often By Bill Scanlon, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Being poor in Colorado continues to be a big risk factor in contracting cancer and dying from it. A new groundbreaking study, "Cancer & Poverty: Colorado: 1995-2006," found this to be true across all types of cancers and points to a multitude of causes. The higher risk factors for Coloradans in poverty or close to it suggest an extra 300 or so cancer deaths each year.
To read the full article, click RMN12-2

*11/27/08 Durango Herald, Councilors may cease aid to clinic, Cost overruns force city to look at cutting Health Services money, By Shane Benjamin Herald Staff Writer
The city of Durango is con­sidering pulling the plug on a clinic that was created in May 2007 when Valley-Wide Health Systems closed is doors, leaving thousands of residents without primary care.
To read the full article, click health clinic

*11/27/08 Durango Herald, Manna stops Sunday meal, Church seeking new place to hold religious service, By Dale Rodebaugh Herald Staff Writer
A nondenominational church that has served Sunday breakfast at the Manna Soup Kitchen to transients and the home­less for 30 months has learned that the kitchen will not be open on the Sabbath beyond Sunday.
To read the full article, click Manna

*10/22/08 Los Angeles Times: Health insurers reinvent themselves as money managers By Michael A. Hiltzik Many rush to open banks as more Americans open health savings accounts, a tax-sheltered way to pay medical bills. Managing that money is more profitable than offering health insurance.
to read the article, click LATIMES 10-22

*9/10/08 Durango Herald By Carla K. Johnson Associated Press Writer: Fewer medical students choose primary care Only 2 percent of graduating medical students say they plan to work in primary­care internal medicine, raising worries about a looming shortage of the first-stop doctors who used to be the backbone of the Amer­ican medical system.
To read the full article, click La Plata Healthcare

*5/1/08 New congressional report says Wyden-Bennett health plan would pay for itself, StarTribune.com, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.

*4/29/08 Study Warns Job Losses Will Strain Government Health Programs, New York Times, By KEVIN SACK

*4/29/08 AMERICANS RANK HEALTH CARE NEAR THE TOP OF THEIR ECONOMIC WOES, NEW POLL FINDS, Kaiser Family Foundation

*4/23/08 Dems Hedge on Healthcare, Kaiser Family Foundation, contributed by Manu Raju

*4/16/08 Former senators tackle health issues seattlepi.com, By KEVIN FREKING ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

*4/10/08 By Joe Hanel, Herald Denver Bureau: Lawmakers want to ask companies for health insurance for all in state Senators took a small step toward a universal health-insurance system Wednesday. A Senate panel voted to ask private insurance companies to set up cheap, basic health plans in the next two years. By 2010, the Legislature could vote on requiring every Coloradan to buy some form of health insurance, with subsidies for people who can't afford a basic policy.
to read the complete story, click DH4-10

*3/25/08 Denver Post, Study: one Coloradan dies each day due to no health insurance, The Associated Press The report by the New York-based Families USA is based on a national study by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. The report says people without health insurance often forgo checkups and other preventive care and are more likely to be diagnosed with a disease in the advanced stages. The study found that between 2000 and 2006, an estimated 2,100 adults in Colorado between 25 and 64 died because they didn't have health insurance.

*3/2/08: New York Times Week in Review, Coming Soon: Health Care Debate, Part 2, Kevin Sack The skirmishing between the Democratic presidential candidates over the mechanics of universal health coverage will soon give way to a quite different general-election debate -- about whether universal coverage should even be a national priority. For a view of the full article, click NYT3/2/08

*3/2/2008: Durango Herald opinion piece by Lynn Westberg, Directing Health Care, A system under pressure needs "individual mandate " reform. For the article, click DH3/2/08

*2/26/2008: Health-care spending to beat inflation, Kevin Freking, The Associated Press By 2017, consumers and taxpayers will spend more than $4 trillion on health care, accounting for $1 of every $5 spent, the federal government projects. For the entire article, click AP2-26

*2/14/2008, Gov. Bill Ritter has announced his reduced plan for healthcare reform. His plan calls for spending $25M out of the current budget to extend health insurance to 45,000 uninsured children in Colorado within three years. For additional info, click DH 2-14-08

*11/14/2007, Durango Herald: Gov. Bill Ritter's Blue Ribbon Commission on Healthcare came to Durango on 11/13/07 and reiterated what many already know: Solving the state's healthcare crisis won't be easy. For more information, click Ritter's 208 Commission Seeks Answers

*11/11/2007, Durango Herald: $300,000 Grant helps health care in the county but is not a cure-all. For more information, click Mercy Foundation grant

*11/8/2007, Durango CO: The Mercy Health Foundation is scheduled to receive $300,000 from a congressional appropriations bill toward construction and equipping of a 50,000 square-foot community health clinic in Durango. For more information, click Mercy Health

Healthcare References

*12/14/09 New Yorker: Testing, Testing The health-care bill has no master plan for curbing costs. Is that a bad thing? by Atul Gawande

Cost is the spectre haunting health reform. For many decades, the great flaw in the American health-care system was its unconscionable gaps in coverage. Those gaps have widened to become graves--resulting in an estimated forty-five thousand premature deaths each year--and have forced more than a million people into bankruptcy. The emerging health-reform package has a master plan for this problem. By establishing insurance exchanges, mandates, and tax credits, it would guarantee that at least ninety-four per cent of Americans had decent medical coverage. This is historic, and it is necessary. But the legislation has no master plan for dealing with the problem of soaring medical costs. And this is a source of deep unease...

*11/19/09 NY Times: Comparing the House and the Senate Health Care Proposals
Senate Democrats unveiled sweeping legislation Wednesday to overhaul the nation's health care system. Earlier this month the House passed its own version. The proposals are broadly similar but differ on some major issues, such as on a new government insurance plan, abortion and immigration. Many provisions of the Senate bill, including the mandate for individuals to obtain insurance and the creation of insurance markets, would take effect in 2014, a year later than similar provisions of the House bill. A look at how the proposals compare on some key issues:

*8/26/09 Colorado Health Institute:
HealthWords 2 was prepared by the Colorado Health Institute (CHI) staff to assist policymakers, state and local agency officials and others in better understanding the myriad of terms and acronyms that are part of ongoing health care reform discussions.
This 2009 glossary is an update to CHI's 2007 publication with additional terms that have become part of the lexicon of health care reform's unique language used to describe state- and national- level reform options and strategies.

*8/14/09 Kaiser Health News: Checking In With Denver Health CEO Patricia Gabow On A Model Health Care System By Andrew Villegas
President Barack Obama's trip Saturday to Grand Junction, Colorado is meant to highlight an efficient, high-quality health care system, one with "integrated care." That phrase has become a popular term these days as Congress and policy gurus contemplate how the national health care delivery system can be refined...

*8/11/09 AARP: Health Reform: Get the Facts A message about health care reform from AARP

*8/7/09 Kaiser Family Foundation:Side-by-Side Comparison of Major Health Care Reform Proposals Share
Achieving comprehensive health reform has emerged as a leading priority of the President and Congress. President Obama has outlined eight principles for health reform, seeking to address not only the 45 million people who lack health insurance, but also rising health care costs and lack of quality. In Congress, a number of comprehensive reform proposals have been announced as the debate proceeds over how to overhaul the health care system.

*8/6/09 Kaiser Health News:Checking In With Health Insurers' Chief Lobbyist Karen Ignagni By Laurie McGinley, Julie Appleby and Eric Pianin
This has become an especially rough-and-tumble time for Karen Ignagni, the health industry's chief lobbyist. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has denounced insurers as "villains," and President Obama has criticized the industry for its "windfall profits." Earlier this year, Ignagni pledged to work with Obama and Congress to pass major health care legislation this year, but relations have cooled as the White House and congressional Democrats have begun citing the industry's practices as a top reason to pass an overhaul of the nation's health care system...

*7/31/09 LWV of Arizona: Healthcare Issues Behind Healthcare Reform
Ever wonder where to find the details about the American Health System in a consolidated reference? As health care is almost constantly in the news this year, the issue can become very complicated. The League of Women Voters of Arizona has compiled a booklet that should supply many of the facts and figures you are looking for. It is the Health Care Issues BEHIND Health Care Reform. This booklet is not advocating for a certain plan or a particular reform, rather it simply supplies legislators, those personally interested in reform, or advocates for certain plans, the materials they need when considering their point of view or when trying to convince others of it. Health Care Reform is important to EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU...

*7/31/09 LWV New Mexico: The Cost of Doing Nothing by Dick Mason
In 2007, New Mexico studied alternative ways of achieving universal health care. As well as looking at three different models, the consultant that conducted the study was asked to look at cost of maintaining the status quo that turned out to be the most expensive alternative.
Much has been made about the one trillion dollars the Congressional Budget Office estimated the House health reform bill would cost. The Congressional Budget Office has not studied the cost of maintaining the status quo. Well, the Urban Institute and the Centers for Medicare and Medicare Services have and here is what they found...

*6/29/09 Kaiser Family Foundation: Side-by-Side Comparison of Major Health Care Reform Proposals
Achieving comprehensive health reform has emerged as a leading priority of the President and Congress. President Obama has outlined eight principles for health reform, seeking to address not only the 45 million people who lack health insurance, but also rising health care costs and lack of quality. In Congress, a number of comprehensive reform proposals have been announced as the debate begins over how to overhaul the health care system.
This interactive side-by-side compares the leading comprehensive reform proposals across a number of key characteristics and plan components.

*4/1/09 New England Journal of Medicine: The Struggle for Reform -- Challenges and Hopes for Comprehensive Health Care Legislation by John K. Iglehart
Undaunted by a soaring federal deficit, competing legislative priorities, and skeptical Republicans, leading Democrats are relentlessly pursuing health care reform, as they hold hearings, engage key stakeholders, plot strategy, and draft legislation. Five congressional committees -- two in the Senate and three in the House -- are at work on major reform legislation. While underscoring his administration's strong support for reform, President Barack Obama has emphasized his preference that Congress lead in crafting a measure aimed at expanding coverage, improving care delivery, and constraining the growth of health care spending.

*4/9/09 New England Journal of Medicine: Stimulating the Adoption of Health Information Technology by David Blumenthal, M.D., M.P.P.
The recently enacted stimulus bill -- the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) -- touches almost every aspect of the U.S. economy. Health care is no exception. In fact, the ARRA is historic health care legislation of the type rarely produced by our famously incremental federal government. The law prevents dramatic state cuts in Medicaid, expands funding for preventive health care services and health care research, and helps the unemployed buy health insurance. But perhaps its most profound effect on doctors and patients will result from its unprecedented $19 billion program to promote the adoption and use of health information technology (HIT) and especially electronic health records (EHRs).

*3/30/09 Healthcare.gov: The Costs of Inaction - the urgent need for health reform
Americans across the country are demanding comprehensive health reform and cannot afford to wait any longer for Washington to act. Businesses and families are struggling as costs continue to skyrocket. More and more Americans find themselves uninsured. Those Americans fortunate enough to have health insurance often don't get the quality care they need and deserve. The Costs of Inaction highlights the flaws in the health care system and demonstrates the cost of maintaining the status quo. Organized into three sections - Escalating Health Care Costs, Diminishing Access to Care and Persistent Gaps in Quality - the report shows how the current system has failed millions of Americans and why we must enact comprehensive health reform this year.

*3/22/09 A Brief History of Health Reform from the Henry J Kaiser Family Foundation

*2/7/09: HEALTH CARE REFORM PRINCIPLES
At the Durango Legislative Lowdown on February 7, Colorado Rep. Ellen Roberts distributed these principles saying that before real progress can be made on health care issues in our state, we must agree on these principles.
The following are principles developed by a coalition of labor, business, health care and advocacy organizations who have declared the health care status unacceptable and are building an alliance to promote comprehensive health care reform in Colorado.
Click healthcare principles to read these healthc are reform principles.

*1/26/09 New Yorker Magazine: Getting There from Here How should Obama reform healthcare? by Atul Gawande click 1/27/09NY to read the article

*Window of Opportunity?, Drew Altman, Ph D, President and CEO, Kaiser Family Foundation
Beginning this Spring, between expected approval of an economic stimulus package and the start of campaigning for the midterm election, there will be a rare window of opportunity for passage of major health reform legislation. History suggests that momentum can be lost if policymakers do not move quickly to seize these rare openings when they occur.
Click window of opportunity to read the article.

*Healthcare for All Colorado: Single-Payer Universal Health Care - Health Care for All Colorado (HCAC) is a Colorado volunteer based, nonprofit organization, working for universal health care utilizing a single-payer (improved Medicare for All) financing for all people in Colorado.
click Healthcare Colorado for news and events.

*12/5/08 Solutions for our Health Care Crisis by US Senator Ken Salazar
On Friday, December 5, 2008, I co-hosted the 2008 Colorado Health Care Summit, which brought together a wide range of stakeholders from the health care community to discuss how we can work together to fix America's broken health care system. The Summit was the culminating event of my recent Health Care Tour, which took me to over thirty-one Colorado communities to solicit input for reform from elected officials, business owners, health care providers, and community members.

Senator Tom Daschle delivered the keynote address at the Summit. I hope you will take a few moments to watch his remarks, which you can view by clicking Daschle12-5-08. You can also read Sen. Daschle's remarks and my remarks.
In the coming months, Congress, in partnership with the Obama Administration, will work to develop comprehensive solutions to address the health care crisis. As we gear up for reform, it is important that you share your ideas with me.
I look forward to bringing many of your ideas, and ideas from the Summit and the Health Care Tour, to the coming debate over health care reform.
There is a long road ahead, but I believe that we can rise to meet this challenge and ensure every American has access to affordable, quality care.

Sincerely,
Ken Salazar
United States Senator

11/21/07: Southwest Colorado: A demographic and health profile produced by the Colorado Health Institute

This report provides a profile of selected demographic, health care access and health status characteristics of southwest Colorado and compares these characteristics to the state as a whole. Nine southwest Colorado counties are included in this report: Archuleta, Delta, Dolores, La Plata, Montezuma, Montrose, Ouray, San Juan and San Miguel. The Colorado Health Institute (CHI) intends for this report to complement other existing sources of quantitative and qualitative information about health and health care in southwest Colorado.
To read the full report, click health SW CO

* Health Action New Mexico Working for affordable, accessible, accountable health care for all people living in New Mexico

*4/23/08 Forrester's First Look At Healthcare Consumers, Forrester Research

*April 14, 2008:What Role Will Health Care Play As the General Election Unfolds?,Kaiser Family Foundation, Health08.org
to read the entire spotlight article, click kaiser-Apr

*New England Journal of Medicine, Market-Based Failure -- A Second Opinion on US Healthcare Costs

*Consumer Health Initiative Community Update, click CHI

*Health 08 - The Kaiser Family Foundation, click Health08 for info concerning the proposed health plans for all the 2008 Presidential candidates.

* Robert Wood Johnson Foundation A private foundation improving the health and health care of all americans

* The Bridge to a Healthier New Year, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, January 2008

* The Commonwealth Fund A Private Foundation Working Toward a High Performance Health System

*January 2008 Commonwealth Fund Health Care Survey, The Public's Views on Health Care Reform in the 2008 Presidential Election, click healthcare survey Note: a summary of this survey can be found in the section above, click healthcare summary

*1/31/2008 CNN, as part of its ongoing "Broken Government" series, presented a Healthcare in Crisis special moderated by Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Dr. Sanjay Gupta is chief medical correspondent for the health and medical unit at CNN. A board-certified neurosurgeon, Gupta is a member of several organizations, including the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, Congress of Neurological Surgeons, Do Something Foundation, Healing the Children Foundation, the Council of Foreign Relations and the Brain Foundation. He serves as a diplomat of the American Board of Neurosurgery and is a certified medical investigator.
Click CNN 1-31-08 to view analysis and videos on these topics:
Health Care in the U.S.
How healthy is California? video (3:16)
GOP candidates' health plans video (3:15)
Bankrupt with health insurance video (2:13)
Tips to effectively battle your insurance company
Election Center 2008: Candidates on health care
Conditions and procedures: How much do you know?
Picking the right hospital can save your life

*"Federal Health Coverage Programs: Building Blocks for Coverage of the Uninsured", Diane Rowland and Adele Shartzer, LWVUS National Voter, February 2008, click Cure for the Uninsured

*1/30/2008 "First Look at Shifting Healthcare Priorities", Forrester Healthcare, click First Look

*for more information regarding the 2008 Presidential candidates and their positions on healthcare, click POTUS health positions 2008

*for information regarding current La Plata County Healthcare Consultants, click John Snow Inc

*for information regarding the Citizens Health Advisory Council of La Plata County, click CHAC

Past Events 2009

*10/22/09 from LWVLPC: If you support Health Care Reform, now is the time to flood our elected officials with messages indicating that support, and, if you agree, asking for the choice of a public option to keep costs under control.

Local numbers are:
Senator Udall: 970-247-1047
Senator Bennet: 970-259-1710
Representative Salazar 970-259-1012

If you wish you may call their D.C. congressional offices directly through these toll free numbers: 1-877-264-4226 (health care line to their offices) or 1-866-338-1015 for the congressional switchboard. You may also leave a message for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid by calling the switchboard number and requesting his office.

We cannot let up now; it is very important we keep the pressure on our representatives in Washington, DC.

LWVLPC Legislative Chair

*7/22/09 Letter from LWV-LPC Legislative Chair on healthcare legislation:
Dear LWV La Plata Members:
The League has been working hard to urge Congress to pass comprehensive health care reform legislation that will guarantee access to comprehensive and essential benefits to all U.S. residents. Such reform must also provide for quality and safety in the health care system and reduce the costs of health care for individuals, businesses and communities. As a nation, we are spending $1 out of every $6 we earn on health care. Over the last three decades, increases in the amount we spend on health care have consistently risen faster than wages and inflation. If nothing is done to control costs, we could be spending $3 trillion for health care by 2011 and $4.2 trillion by 2016. We spend more per capita and yet have worse medical outcomes than most other industrialized countries. 46 million Americans are uninsured, and 25 million more underinsured. Clearly, business as usual is not an option.
If you also support the effort to reform our health care system, LWV-La Plata is asking you to contact our representatives and urge them to take action.
An easy way to do this as individuals is to click on the League's Health Care Reform page: lwvus healthcare
and then click on the action alert, enter your zip code and this will take you to the application that allows you to send a personalized message to Senators Bennet and Udall and Representative Salazar.
Ellen Park
LWV-La Plata Legislative Action Chair

* 10/8/09: Four Corners Air Quality and Our Health
A panel of regional medical specialists will discuss air quality in the Four Corners and its impacts upon our health on Thursday, October 8 from 7-9 p.m at Ft. Lewis College in 130 Noble Hall.
As part of the Life Long Learning Series, they will tell us how the mercury, ground-level ozone, nitrogen and sulfur compounds, and particulate matter in our air can affect our health. Speakers will also share the likely sources of these pollutants. The two-hour event is co-sponsored by the LWVLPC, San Juan Citizens Alliance and Mountain Studies Institute.

*Thursday, August 27: Senator Udall will host a town hall at 1PM, Anasazi Room, La Plata County Courthouse in Durango. Doors open at noon or so and they expect a big crowd in a small venue. It is being labeled Energy, but that was done before the health care debate heated up, so the discussion will likely turn to health care.

Due to high interest in Sen.Udall's Town Hall Meeting this Thursday, Aug. 27, 1 p.m. at the Courthouse, the County has decided to stream the meeting live on their website. It is hoped that people who will be unable to attend in the meeting room because of space limitations will get the feeling of attending live via webstream. Click Udall Town Hall to view the webstream.

*8/1/09 The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Durango, CO will host a healthcare forum at noon, on Sunday, August 16 at 419 San Juan Drive. Local healthcare experts including Lynn Westberg, Director of San Juan Basin Health Dept, Missy Rodey, Jill Patton and John Lyons will seek to outline the current healthcare crisis, consider the pros and cons of Obama's national healthcare reform, consider the politics and economic issues and discuss what Americans can do to facilitate healthcare reform.

*7/22/09: A forum about reforming health care will be presented from 6 to 8pm Wednesday, July 22 at the Durango Community Recreation Center. Panelists will include Rep. Ellen Roberts, R-Durango; Julie Thompson of the Community Health Care Capacity Project; Ryan Siggins, owner of Chiropractic Durango; and Tricia Karpfen, a corporate leadership coach and acupuncturist. The forum will examine how people can get involved at the local level with plans to reform health care. Panelists also are expected to discuss reform ideas under consideration by state legislatures and members of Congress.

*2/24/09 LWV-CO: LWVCO has endorsed HB09-1273 the Colorado Guaranteed Health Care Act (summary attached).
It will be heard in the Business Affairs and Labor Committee at 1:30 pm on March 4.
If your legislator is on this committee now is a good time to speak with him/her about the benefits this act will have in creating an authority to design and create the health care system through a phased-in approach. Further details are on the summary sheet and in Legislative Letter #3 which is available on the LWVCO website.
The Committee hearing has been moved to the Old Supreme Court Chambers to allow for the large numbers of observers-- come on down if you are able.
Click healthcare act to read the details of HB09-1273

*2/24/09 LWV-Colorado: LWVCO has joined as a co-sponsor for the 3rd Annual Health Care Day of Action in Denver on March 9th with the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative and other organizations. It will take place at the Capitol from 8:30am -1:30 pm; registration is free and breakfast and lunch are provided.
There will be workshops, speeches by legislative leaders and an opportunity to meet with legislators to discuss health care. For the rally on the Capitol steps come gather around with the League banner!
For details, the agenda and registration click healthcare day
RSVP to Linda at Lmahan@alum.bu.edu

*12/29/08 As requested by Senator Tom Daschle, Secretary-Elect for Health and Human Services, a community discussion for healthcare reform will be held from 10am to noon in the Anasazi Room of the La Plata County Courthouse. Information collected will be forwarded to Senators Daschle and Salazar. This discussion is sponsored by La Plata County, Mercy Regional Medical Center, CHAC, HSSC, SW CO Mental Health Center and LWV of La Plata County.
Click Healthcare discussion to view a flier for this event.

*12/5/08 CHANGE.GOV The Office of the President-Elect: Daschle asks Americans to help reform health care
As the Transition's Health Policy team puts together its recommendations for the incoming Obama-Biden Administration, we want your thoughts and suggestions.
That's why we're asking Americans all across the country to host health care community discussions over the next few weeks to get input and ideas from their friends, family, and communities.
click Daschle-health query to read more on this request.

Past Events 2007-2008

*3/10/08: San Juan Basin Health Department and San Juan Citizen's Alliance will host a Public Forum entitled
Colorado Healthcare: Crisis and Reform.
The forum, sponsored by the Colorado Progressive Coalition, will be held from 5:30 to 7:30pm at the Durango Rec Center and is open to the general public. All attendees will have the opportunity to hear about health care reform efforts underway in Colorado and to share their thoughts about the direction of health care efforts in our state.
To view a flier of this event, click healthcare forum

*1/31/2008: One of the first joint LWVCO and HCAC events for this emerging grassroots coalition (see article below) will be a rally on Thursday, January 31 in Denver. On that day the 208 Commission Report is scheduled to be presented to the Legislature at 12 noon in the Old Supreme Court chambers.

*9/24/07 JSI Healthcare Community Input Session - Ignacio-Bayfield-Durango.
For slides from this presentation click 9/24 JSI slides
For text from this presentation click 9/24 JSI text
If you were unable to attend one of these sessions and would like to provide input, you may send comments no later than Oct 8 to Pat Murphy, Chairman PHCCC at pat@patmurphymotors.com

*10/10/07 Blue Ribbon Healthcare Commission Community Input Session - Durango. For more information click flier
Note that the location of this meeting has changed from the Durango Rec Center to The Double Tree Hotel, Mesa Verde La Plata Room, 501 Camino Del Rio, Durango
To view the opening statement by Jill Patton, healthcare focus for LWV of La Plata County, click CO LWV 208 position
For a summary of the Blue Ribbon Healthcare Commission session in Durango, click 208 summary 10/10/07

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