I was troubled by the false choice presented in a recent opinion column from Sabrina Walker. Patients do not need to choose between lowering drug prices and protecting pharmaceutical innovation. The drug pricing reforms that are under consideration by the U.S. Senate will maintain the innovation we need at prices we can afford. Like Sabrina, […]
health care costs
Posted inHealth, News
The case of the $489,000 air ambulance ride from Colorado to North Carolina
By Julie Appleby, Kaiser Health News Sean Deines and his wife, Rebekah, were road-tripping after he lost his job as a bartender when the pandemic hit. But while visiting his grandfather in a remote part of Wyoming, Sean started to feel very ill. Rebekah insisted he go to an urgent care center in Laramie. “‘Your […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Reps. Bacon and Mullica: Ban flavored tobacco and e-cigarettes
As parents, educators, and health care providers, we are personally invested in the issue of flavored tobacco, including e-cigarettes. We have seen the harm caused by vaping addiction in kids, at home, in the classroom, and in our medical facilities. Nicotine can have long-lasting effects on brain development, impacting impulse control, the ability to learn […]
Posted inCrime and Courts, Economy, Education, Health, News, Politics and Government
What will be debated at the Colorado Capitol when the legislature returns next week
Gov. Jared Polis wants Colorado to become one of the top 10 safest states in the U.S. within five years, he said Thursday night during a virtual Colorado Sun event ahead of the 2022 legislative session, which begins next week on Jan. 12. “It’ll take a lot of work to get there,” he said. Polis, […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Rising drug prices hurt rural, minority Coloradans most of all
Colorado’s two U.S. senators, John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet, are in a unique position to hold Big Pharma accountable, and lead the way to reduce prescription drug prices. As a physician who has worked at Clinica Tepeyac, a well-regarded private healthcare facility that provides free or low-cost healthcare to the Latino community in Denver, as […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Close freestanding emergency rooms
If you’ve ever driven around central Denver or the I-25 corridor, chances are you’ve noticed quite a number of signs directing you to the nearest emergency room. What many people don’t know is that many of those ERs are “freestanding”—meaning they are not connected to a hospital. If you visit a freestanding ER and have […]
Posted inBusiness, Health, News
A Colorado hospital charged $722.50 to push medicine through an IV. Twice.
By Rae Ellen Bichell, Kaiser Health News Claire Lang-Ree was in a lab coat taking a college chemistry class remotely in the kitchen of her home in Colorado Springs, when a profound pain twisted into her lower abdomen. She called her mom, Jen Lang-Ree, a nurse practitioner who worried it was appendicitis and found a nearby […]
Posted inHealth, Politics and Government
Colorado governor signs priority bills to cut health insurance costs, limit prescription drug prices
Some private insurance companies operating in Colorado will soon be required to offer a state-regulated health insurance plan that eventually will be 15% cheaper than current rates under a bill signed into law Wednesday by Gov. Jared Polis. In addition to House Bill 1232, the health insurance measure, Polis also signed into law legislation creating […]
Posted inBusiness, Health, News, Politics and Government
Colorado Democrats’ big health care bill is headed to the governor’s desk to be signed into law
The Colorado legislature on Monday night sent a sweeping bill intended to drive down health care costs to Gov. Jared Polis’ desk, achieving an elusive goal for Democrats and launching the state into an experiment that could provide a roadmap for the rest of the country. House Bill 1232 passed the General Assembly without the […]
Posted inHealth, News, Politics and Government
Colorado bill prohibits insurers from using “discriminatory” data, like social media and credit scores, to set rates
By Patty Nieberg, The Associated Press/Report for America Colorado lawmakers are considering a bill that would prohibit insurance companies from using consumer information collected from outside sources such as social media and court and home ownership records to determine insurance rates. The measure would bar insurers from using third-party site data to charge higher insurance […]