August 25, 2012 01:32 AM UTC

Creating a single risk pool - advancing a health care cooperative in Colorado

•  
• by: Denver Unemployment Examiner

Efforts are underway here in Colorado to establish a statewide health care cooperative.

JOIN US FOR AN OPEN HOUSE ON THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20!

Where: 1750 Gilpin Street, Denver CO; (4:00-7:30p)

Senator Irene Aguilar, MD will speak at 6 and 7 pm. Refreshments. RSVPs encouraged but not required.

Conservatives want to contain costs and have freedom of choice, while liberals want to cover everyone. The Cooperative would do both.

The Cooperative is based on legislation introduced by CO State Senator, Irene Aguilar, MD – a well-respected doctor who got fed up with health care inequities and decided she needed to run for the seat vacated by Sen. Chris Romer when he resigned his Senate seat to run for mayor.

The Co-op would create a single risk pool where all residents of Colorado would be owner-members of the Co-op. We (the State of CO) would ask for waivers and pool all Medicare, Medicaid, VA benefits and other state-funded programs, such as the Colorado Indigent Care Program (CICP)which gives many who aren’t eligible for Medicaid or other government-funded assistance programs, access to low-cost clinics based on sliding scale income.

Instead of paying premiums to a health insurance company, individuals and business would pay smaller premiums based on payroll and income – it will bring down health care costs for everyone, including business owners who would no longer have to worry about the time and expense of administering health insurance plans for their employees – and their health care costs would be predictable.

Of course, if individuals still want to purchase additional ‘cadillac’ plans from the insurance companies for benefits not covered by the Cooperative, they are free to do so.

It’s a win-win for business owners, patients and providers!

Information about the Co-op as well as the open house can be found on the ‘Co-operate Colorado’ website as well as on our sister site, ‘The Colorado Foundation for Universal Healthcare’ (links below).

Please join us to learn more – and help spread the word!

We also now have memberships!  Please visit the website to learn more.

email:  info@healthcareforallforless.org

http://www.couniversalhealth.o…

http://www.healthcareforallfor…