A report ordered by the legislature to examine Medicaid reimbursement rates for mental health providers has further annoyed therapists in private practice.
Kim Bimestefer
Posted inNews, Politics and Government
Colorado moves another step closer to importing lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada
Colorado has taken another step toward importing lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada, after signing contracts with companies on both sides of the border that will handle the transaction. The state hopes that bringing in regular, everyday prescription drugs from Canada, where they are sold at a lower price than in the United States, will help […]
Posted inHealth, News
Grand Junction mental health center accused of prescription errors that threatened patient safety, report says
By Susan Greene, Colorado News Collaborative, and Chris Osher, The Gazette A pattern of “severe, life-threatening” prescription errors by the troubled mental health center responsible for serving 10 Western Slope counties put many of its patients at risk, according to the findings of an official investigation that state agencies withheld from the public for more […]
Posted inHealth, News
Medicaid payment issues plague host of Colorado caregivers and therapists who see low-income and disabled patients
Payment issues in Colorado’s Medicaid system extend beyond mental health therapists who’ve been raising alarm for months that they aren’t receiving timely reimbursement for seeing patients who are low-income or have disabilities. As the state Department of Health Care Policy and Financing tries to tamp down a string of payment debacles with mental health professionals, […]
Posted inHealth, News, Politics and Government
Class-action lawsuit alleges Colorado is failing at children’s mental health care
Colorado has lapsed on its obligation to provide mental health care for needy children, leaving them to cycle in and out of emergency rooms instead of receiving appropriate long-term care, according to a federal class-action lawsuit filed against the state Medicaid program. The lawsuit so far includes three anonymous plaintiffs, all teenagers who have for […]
Posted inCOVID, Health, News, Politics and Government
Despite fears, Colorado’s biggest hospitals made money during the pandemic
When the coronavirus shut down Colorado last spring, fears mounted that the state’s hospitals were about to get hammered financially. In rapidly shifting to focus on caring for sick COVID-19 patients, hospitals paused lucrative elective procedures. Patients skipped usual visits. Hospitals pumped money into buying protective equipment and turning floors into coronavirus units. Estimates for […]
Posted inBusiness, Health, News
Colorado will pay hospitals to close expensive free-standing ERs
By Phil Galewitz, KHN Colorado health officials so abhor the high costs associated with free-standing emergency rooms they’re offering to pay hospitals to shut the facilities down. The state wants hospitals to convert them to other purposes, such as providing primary care or mental health services. At least 500 free-standing ERs have set up in more […]
Posted inHealth, News, Politics and Government
Colorado already allows prescription drug imports from Canada. Lawmakers want to open it up to more countries.
By Patty Niebert, The Associated Press/Report for America Colorado lawmakers are considering a bill to add more countries to a state program that imports prescription drugs from Canada. The state House Health and Insurance committee passed a bill Wednesday that would expand the program if the federal program is also increased. In 2020, under former […]
Posted inCOVID, Health, News
When coronavirus attacked Colorado’s health, it changed the state’s health system forever
In Hugo, population 707, where the dominant view is of the water tower, hospital officials with empty beds during the pandemic offered their place as a high-quality respite for city folks on the long road back from the devastating coronavirus. One woman from Greeley, who before the virus took her down couldn’t put Lincoln County […]
Posted inBusiness, Health, News, Politics and Government
Colorado takes a step toward importing drugs from Canada, but the start date is still two years away
If you develop osteoporosis, your doctor might prescribe for you a drug called teriparatide, which is sold by the drugmaker Eli Lilly under the brand name Forteo. In the pharmaceutical industry, Forteo, which helps rebuild bone, is what is known as a blockbuster — a massive, reliable seller that brings in billions of dollars for […]