Don’t succumb to fears, half-truths on ColoradoCare

Can the business community count on Congress to fix our ridiculously complex and expensive health-insurance system if we give it more time? Is there a viable alternative coming from the American Medical Association or the Chamber of Commerce? No. Major social change always starts at the grassroots level. That is why the states must take the lead in health-care reform.

Medicare, the system that covers all seniors age 65 and older, is simple, affordable and comprehensive. Colorado can use the same approach for everyone under age 65 if we approve ColoradoCare/Amendment 69 this November. Businesses will no longer need to provide health insurance.

Competition and profit in the delivery of medical care, especially if true free market conditions are in place, is excellent.  And with ColoradoCare, everyone can choose their medical provider.

But competition in the delivery of health insurance has added only complexity and cost. Approximately 27 percent of all medical spending in the U.S. is wasted money (2012, Institute of Medicine). A significant portion of the waste is due to complexity, inefficiency and conflicting goals in the for-profit insurance industry.

The “business model” for the current fragmented health-care system has the financial incentives backwards and is thus driving up costs. For example, we know early detection and preventive care keeps us healthier and is less costly. Yet we have a rapid growth of insurance policies with $5,000 to $10,000 deductibles. These high deductibles encourage the average family to avoid seeing the doctor. The proliferation of stand-alone emergency rooms (which can legally charge five to 10 times the normal rate for non-emergency care) is one of the reasons Coloradans are paying $800 million more per year than we would have paid if many of those visits went to a 24-hour clinic. (Denver Post Nov. 4, 2015) We send an enormous amount of money to the insurance industry that has an obligation to make profits for its stockholders, not represent our health-care needs. The Affordable Care Act allows them to have overhead and profit up to 20 percent. ColoradoCare (a nonprofit entity) is projected to have overhead of approximately 4 percent, just like Medicare, because it will be managing one comprehensive health plan, not hundreds of different insurance policies. (Colorado Health Institute)

Under ColoradoCare, everyone is covered: full-time employees, part-time and contractual employees, and those in transition. For all businesses, the stress and cost of administering health insurance will be eliminated. The business role is a simple payroll deduction. Employees won’t be leaving you for a company that provides better health-care benefits. Unproductive employees won’t hang on for the health insurance.

ColoradoCare is funded by a simple payroll tax, 3.33 percent paid by the employee and 6.67 percent by the employer. Self-employed pay 10 percent of net income.. Employers who provide health insurance are subsidizing those companies that do not. It is not realistic to think we can have meaningful health-care reform without all employers participating.  Most workers’ compensation insurance premiums will be reduced by about 59 percent (the medical portion). Nationally, employers are paying 13.5 percent of payroll to provide health coverage and the medical portion of workers comp.

Funding health care through a tax structure provides predictability — something business owners appreciate. Colorado’s tax rate may look higher, but the net cost to operate will be lower and better controlled. The ColoradoCare tax cannot be increased unless voters approve. (Section 9(8) of Amendment 69)

There is also a major safeguard built into Amendment 69. The federal Departments of the Treasury and Health and Human Services need to review and approve the plan to make sure it is financially viable and the benefits are comprehensive before ColoradoCare would go into effect.

Between now and the November election, you will hear a campaign of fear and half-truths funded by the health-care industry: Anthem, $1 million; United Healthcare, $450,000; HealthOne, $250,000; Centura Health, $250,000; and others. (Colorado Secretary of State, campaign finance reports for Coloradans For Coloradans, ending July).

We need to simplify our health-care financing system, make sure it covers everyone (not with insurance policies with $5,000 to $10,000 deductibles) and take back control from the insurance industry. Go to www.coloradocare.org  for details. Vote YES for Amendment 69.

Rich Shannon is a Fort Collins resident and ColoradoCare volunteer. He can be contacted at 970-481-4438.

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