Final
Colorado Health Institute
HEALTH INSURANCE
Votes:
Action Taken:
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01:28 PM -- Presentation by the Colorado Health Institute
The committee reconvened.
Pam Hanes, Colorado Health Institute, described the activities and mission of the Colorado Health Institute and distributed a packet of information to the committee (Attachment D). She began her discussion of health insurance issues in Colorado by describing problems in accessing health insurance coverage and health care in Colorado including: small employers and their employees being priced out of the health insurance market; exacerbation of the problem by the move away from the modified community rating; an increase in the number of providers who are unwilling to accept Medicare and Medicaid patients; and hospital emergency departments becoming the default primary care providers. She discussed increases in small group premiums and the percentage of small firms offering health insurance in Colorado from 1996 to 2002. She stated that although the number of employers who offered health insurance to their employees remained stable, there was a 12 percent decline in the number of employees in small group firms who enrolled in coverage. Eleven percent of Coloradoans receive health insurance through the small group market, while 16 percent of the population are uninsured. Seventy-six percent of uninsured persons are employed and, of that number, 61 percent work in firms with less than 100 employees. She reviewed the functions of state policy makers in the healthy policy arena including: establishing the ground rules for the subvention of federal funds; setting the regulatory framework for the healthcare marketplace and healthcare professionals; and promoting innovation at the state and local level.
01:45 PM
Ms. Hanes continued her discussion of health insurance access in Colorado by describing a chart showing the uninsured population in Colorado by county. She described three case studies of innovation at the local level. First, the Roaring Fork Valley Community Health Access Program is developing an evidence-based insurance model pilot, is exploring innovative community and regional financing mechanisms to underwrite insurance for uninsured residents, and is testing quality-focused clinical strategies and administrative efficiencies. The Roaring Fork Valley Community Health Access Program is currently developing a community health access plan that addresses regulatory issues, administrative issues, community capacity, purchasing pools, the use of co-payments, premium sharing and deductibles, and the assessment of the plan's interface with other public and private programs. In the past, the Roaring Fork Valley has pursued other successful private/public partnerships including funding a local transportation system and an affordable housing program.
01:54 PM
Ms. Hanes continued her discussion of innovations at the local level by describing the El Paso Community Health Partnership. The partnership between the local medical society, local foundations, public and mental health departments, the Department of Human Services, and safety net providers was formed in 1996. Areas addressed by the partnership include: substance abuse; pharmacy; access to care; chronic disease; and cultural competence. The partnership has received federal grants to track patients who visit various community providers. She described the impact of certain state policy decisions on access to the health care system in El Paso County, including the implementation of CBMS, the freeze in enrollment in CHP+, and the discontinuation of presumptive eligibility. She continued her discussion by describing the Northern Larimer County Health District. The Northern Larimer County Health District originally was formed to fund hospital construction, but has since expanded to fund other community health initiatives. She emphasized the importance of partnerships between public and private entities; intergovernmental partnerships; and government, private sector, and individual partnerships to address health care access problems.
02:07 PM
Ms. Hanes responded to questions from Representative Riesberg regarding a single-entry point to health care access in El Paso county.
02:11 PM
The committee recessed briefly.