Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Not Waiting



Thank Your Legislators
Thank the legislative sponsors of the Colorado Healthcare Affordability Act!
Colorado isn't waiting for Washington to act.

Roughly 800,000 Coloradans lack health insurance. That means nearly a million people in our state are just one chronic disease diagnosis, one non-elective surgery, or one emergency room visit away from personal catastrophe.

And it means that everyone else faces skyrocketing healthcare premiums as hospitals shift costs onto those who are insured -- and their employers.

That's changing. Yesterday, I signed the most significant healthcare reform bill Colorado has seen in four decades: the Colorado Healthcare Affordability Act.


My administration proposed this critical bill earlier this year as a common sense way to reduce costs and improve access to healthcare in our state, so I'm grateful it won the General Assembly's approval. It's important we let supporters in the legislature know we appreciate their efforts to lead our state forward.

Please thank the legislative sponsors of the Colorado Healthcare Affordability Act for fighting to reduce costs and improve access to quality healthcare in Colorado.

The Colorado Healthcare Affordability Act will provide health insurance to more than 100,000 uninsured Coloradans.
At the same time, it addresses the issue of cost-shifting, which increases expenses for insured Coloradans and businesses that provide health coverage for their employees.

This initiative will cost Colorado taxpayers nothing. It generates new revenue through a hospital provider fee which cannot be passed on to patients or insurers, and through $600 million in new federal matching funds. In return, the state will provide larger reimbursements to Colorado hospitals for uncompensated care through Medicaid and the Colorado Indigent Care Program (CICP).

By signing the Colorado Healthcare Affordability Act into law, we join over 40 states that have already implemented this type of healthcare strategy -- drawing down federal funding to reduce costs and improve access for the uninsured.

Please thank the legislative sponsors of the Colorado Healthcare Affordability Act for fighting to reduce costs and improve access to quality healthcare in Colorado.

The tides have changed in Washington and I'm confident the national healthcare reform we need is finally on the way. But we aren't waiting for Washington. We're leading Colorado forward right now, to fix our broken healthcare system and get our economy back on track.

Sincerely,

Bill Ritter, Jr.
Governor