Healthy debate awaits state

DENVER - Throughout the year, members of the Blue Ribbon Commission on Health Care Reform have held discussions with providers and activists, insulated from the glare of politics.

On Wednesday, commission leaders delivered their first report to legislators — and met with a mixed reaction.

A number of Democrats said the five plans the group is evaluating, including a controversial idea to eliminate private insurance and have the state provide health care to 4.6 million residents, go a long way toward solving what they called an insurance crisis.

But the few Republicans who attended the 90-minute hearing in the Old Supreme Court Chambers said the commission is exceeding the scope of its duties and considering plans the public will not accept.

“This is a unique opportunity where we might rewrite how things are done not only in Colorado but the United States of America, right here, right now,” said Sen. John Morse, D-Colorado Springs, of the potential for Colorado to chart a course for the rest of the country.

The commission is evaluating four plans to reform state health care that were selected from a group of 31 proposals, and it is crafting a fifth proposal that blends elements from all of the ideas. It is expected to present its final evaluation to the Legislature in January.

To fund most of the plans, legislators would have to seek voter approval to increase or impose taxes. The subject is expected to be one of the hottest of next year, and many health care activists are pushing for a 2008 ballot issue.

The most talked about of the proposals is a $26.6 billion plan that would see the state taking over the insurance industry, eliminating private, forprofit companies and offering nearly free Medicaid-style benefits for everyone. Backers have praised the commission for considering such a radical departure, while critics have seized on this to claim that discussions about changing health care are not in line with what the public wants.

Rep. Anne McGihon, a Denver Democrat who sponsored the bill creating the commission, praised the group after the hearing for doing an “incredible job” by analyzing every option. She declined to say what she hopes will come out to the Legislature, but she said polls show 39 percent of Coloradans favor the singlepayer, Canada-style health care system.

Rep. Amy Stephens, R-Monument, also lauded the commission for the amount of work it’s done but cautioned that it is just the beginning of a multiyear process that needs more public discussion before the General Assembly considers any radical changes. Stephens dismissed the possibility of “socialized” health care and questioned whether its consideration exceeds the commission’s goal of finding a way to get health care to the state’s estimated 792,000 uninsured.

“This conversation is just picking up steam, and it’s way too early to talk about implementing anything,” Stephens said.

Still, McGihon, chairwoman of the House Health and Human Services Committee, said she hopes to clear the calendar of all bills except health care reform by Jan. 31.

The commission plans to hold its next round of public hearings next month, including one Oct. 5 in Colorado Springs at a location that remains to be determined.

CONTACT THE WRITER: (303)837-0613 or ed.sealover@gazette.com

FIVE PLANS AT A GLANCE

SOLUTIONS FOR A HEALTHY COLORADO

Would mandate residents purchase health insurance but expand Medicaid eligibility for children, pregnant women and parents of minors and offer sliding-scale tax credits for adults at less than 250 percent of the federal poverty level.

Total program cost: $1.37 billion

New revenue needed: $853 million

Percent of uninsured who become insured: 82.5 percent

BETTER HEALTH CARE FOR COLORADO

No mandates. Would increase public health-plan eligibility for children and pregnant women, offer subsidies to adults, create a group health care buy-in for small businesses that don’t offer insurance now.

Total program cost: $980 million

New revenue needed: $389 million

Percent of uninsured who become insured: 40 percent

A PLAN FOR COVERING COLORADANS

The plan: Would mandate employers offer health care, expand Medicaid eligibility for all groups of people, offer a sliding-scale premium subsidy program to all but the aged.

Total program cost: $3.15 billion

New revenue needed: $2.01 billion

Percent of uninsured who become insured: 86.3 percent

COLORADO HEALTH SERVICES PROGRAM

Would replace private insurance and existing government programs with a state-administered singlepayer system funded largely by a payroll tax and increases in the income, alcohol and tobacco taxes.

Total program cost: $26.58 billion

New revenue needed: $15.03 billion

Percent of uninsured who become insured: 100 percent

FIFTH PROPOSAL

The plan: An evolving amalgamation of all ideas submitted to the commission. Would require residents to purchase insurance but also expand Medicaid and offer subsidies for people between 200 and 400 percent of the federal poverty level. Would create an optional state-sponsored continuouscoverage plan that people use when they change jobs and would make it easier to enroll in public health plans and stay in them for one year after finding employment.

Total program cost: Unknown

New revenues needed: Unknown

Percent of uninsured who become insured: Unknown