GUEST COLUMN: Colorado health care reform taking many innovative shapes
By Anne Warhover
As national health care reform makes its way to Colorado, emotionally charged opinions, political maneuvering and even a Constitutional challenge will greet its arrival. The one thing on which we can all agree is these reforms will affect what, how and to whom health care is delivered— and at what cost—for generations to come.
One of the biggest challenges is how to achieve true value through health care quality improvement and controlling costs. But what exactly would these achievements look like in practical application? How do we reconcile national mandates in a way that positively impacts the lives of real families and businesses in Colorado?
These are essential questions the Colorado Health Foundation seeks to answer by supporting nonprofit and nonpartisan organizations that develop promising, innovative health care solutions. The vision we share is increased access to care, improved health care quality and a larger focus on healthier living.
There are many ways health care reform is taking shape in Colorado, and by many indicators, we are well positioned to respond to the 2010 National Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Let me share a few examples supported by the Colorado Health Foundation:
The Colorado Regional Health Information Organization has brought together a growing number of Colorado’s hospitals and health care organizations to develop a shared Electronic Medical Record (EMR) program. A primary element in national reform legislation, EMR initiatives help position our state for significant incentives and federal funding.
Forward-thinking organizations are working to promote access to primary care in underserved areas and to improve Colorado’s network of safety net and school-based health clinics, whose coordinated care and measurable outcomes have become models to which other states aspire.
Two other initiatives address improvements in prevention and in the delivery of care. LiveWell Colorado’s efforts to promote the prevention and reduction of obesity align with the national “Let’s Move” campaign. The Center for Improving Value in Health Care leads and promotes efforts to contain rising health care costs, lower premiums, improve quality of care, and make data available so employers and individuals can make good decisions.
These and similar initiatives are a great start in aligning “Colorado grown” health care enterprises with key provisions of national health care reform.
Continued innovation, however, will require creative thinking, stamina, resolve, a thorough understanding of the issues, and the pioneering spirit that is a signature characteristic of the Centennial State. That is one reason why the Colorado Health Symposium, hosted this year in Keystone July 28-30, has become a national paradigm for collaboration. It is here that the best minds from the public and private arenas — government, small businesses, the health care industry, academia and nonprofit organizations — will come together from across the nation to generate debate and drive a vital exchange of ideas to effect real-world health care solutions.
While debate continues over how to pay for these services and who should take ownership – the government, the private sector or a combination — the Colorado Health Foundation plays an important role. The inspiration and “can do” momentum that accelerate during important gatherings like the Colorado Health Symposium will serve Coloradans well as we work to leverage our state’s existing strengths to meet the challenges and opportunities afforded by national health care reform.
Anne Warhover is President and CEO of The Colorado Health Foundation
