Reposted from:http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=64356 FORT COLLINS – A House bill that would allow Colorado State University to require all of its graduate students to have health insurance passed the House on third reading Monday and now heads to the Senate for consideration. The bill, sponsored by Rep. John Kefalas, D-Fort Collins, passed on a 37-27 vote. The… Read more about Colorado House OKs Bill on CSU Health Insurance
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Ritter Signs Colorado Prescription Drug Bill
Reposted from: http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.aspx?Feed=AP&Date=20070205&ID=6436880 Gov. Bill Ritter signed his first bill on Monday, a measure that could provide up to 264,000 people with discounts on prescription drugs. The plan, called the Colorado Cares Rx program, allows the state to negotiate lower drug prices with pharmaceutical companies for generic drugs. Ritter said it is a public health… Read more about Ritter Signs Colorado Prescription Drug Bill
Gunnison County Extends Health Insurance to Live-In Partners
Reposted from: http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/01/21/1_21_Same_sex_benefits.html Gunnison may be one of the only counties in this part of Colorado that’s decided to let domestic partners of county employees, including same-sex partners, share in health insurance benefits.Debbie Moore, personnel director for Gunnison County, said the measure has been considered for a couple of years after being requested by a… Read more about Gunnison County Extends Health Insurance to Live-In Partners
Colorado Approves Discount Drug Program
Reposted from: http://www.stateaction.org/blog/?p=462 The Colorado House and Senate approved SB 1, a bill which will allow people who cannot afford health insurance to buy discounted drugs through the state. The measure would authorize the state of Colorado to work in consultation with private sector pharmacies in order to negotiate the lowest possible prices for generic… Read more about Colorado Approves Discount Drug Program
CSU grad students to discuss health insurance today
Reposted from: http://www.coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070131/NEWS01/70131008 Colorado State University graduate students can learn more today about a bill that would require them to carry some form of health-care coverage. The meeting is at 4:30 p.m. in the Grey Rock Room of the Lory Student Center. Hosts are the Graduate Student Council and the Center for Public Deliberation. The… Read more about CSU grad students to discuss health insurance today
New Kaiser Permanente Contracts for Longmont and Boulder Valley
The provider network for Kaiser Permanente of Colorado, Private Healthcare Systems (PHCS), has signed a new contract with Longmont United Hospital (LUH), effective January 1, 2007 through December 31, 2007. In addition, 192 physicians of the Boulder Valley Individual Practice Associates (BVIPA) have agreed to return to the PHCS network. These providers have hospital privileges… Read more about New Kaiser Permanente Contracts for Longmont and Boulder Valley
Colorado Health Insurance Companies Walking the Walk
Some popular health insurance companies in Colorado are making the news with their healthy employee incentive programs. A growing number of companies in Colorado and nationwide are offering free medical screenings, discounts or cash incentives to motivate employees to exercise more, eat better and quit smoking. They hope that a healthier work force will contain… Read more about Colorado Health Insurance Companies Walking the Walk
New MyAnthem Member Portal at Anthem.com
Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado is introducing a better way for our clients to track their explanation of benefits (EOB) forms, accumulations and out-of-pocket expenses – through MyAnthem member portal at anthem.com. The new site features familiar functions and intuitive navigation. And, members who previously registered with MyAnthem don’t have to re-register…. Read more about New MyAnthem Member Portal at Anthem.com
Online Application Video Tutorials
We’ve been trying to figure out a convenient way to help people with the online application process for the various health insurance companies in Colorado that they can use at any hour. Our clients can call or email us with questions, but sometimes they just want to see a tutorial that they can just reference… Read more about Online Application Video Tutorials
State of the Union
With all of the talk and opinions about President Bush’s State of the Union Address tonight, it almost seems like it’s already happened. In a nutshell, the president’s plan is to give tax breaks to people who buy modestly priced plans out of their own pockets and to cover the cost of those breaks by… Read more about State of the Union
The Presidents New Health Insurance Proposals
In his State of the Union Address tomorrow, President Bush will propose providing a standard deduction for health insurance for all Americans as long as they purchase at least catastrophic health insurance coverage. The deduction will be worth $7,500 for single persons and $15,000 for families. These amounts will be indexed to general inflation (CPI)… Read more about The Presidents New Health Insurance Proposals
Another Response to Mike Rosen
The Rocky Mountain News printed a response to Mike Rosen’s article “No ‘crisis’ of uninsured”. It’s not really as much a response to the points Mr. Rosen gave as much as the same figures you’ve read in the health policy blogosphere already. It was written by Dr. Gary D. VanderArk, president of the Coalition for… Read more about Another Response to Mike Rosen
Mike Rosen’s Meaningless Statistics
Mike Rosen wrote an opinion piece in the Rocky Mountain News last week about how there is “No ‘crisis’ of uninsured”. Mr. Rosen attempts to point out that those advocating for universal health coverage are trying to manipulate the statistics. His reasoning: he says that when people say ‘right now there are 46 million people in… Read more about Mike Rosen’s Meaningless Statistics
It’s Worth the Risk
One of my favorite blogs, Health Business Blog, is hosting the Cavalcade of Risk this week. David Williams does a great job organizing the posts into a very readable blog entry. You’ll only need to take a few minutes to browse this edition and find some good reading about risk. This weeks edition also includes… Read more about It’s Worth the Risk
Universal Health Care and the Colorado Health Insurance Industry
A very hopeful Bill Ritter was inaugurated as the new Governor of Colorado on tuesday. He campaigned about changing the healthcare system in Colorado in order to help the 700,000 Coloradoans without health insurance. And in his inaugural speech, he reminded us that because he is “here for the people of Colorado”, he’ll actually do… Read more about Universal Health Care and the Colorado Health Insurance Industry
What Its Like
I just spoke with a woman who got health insurance quotes on our website today. Turns out she was sitting in a Denver emergency waiting room when she got the quotes, and was still in the ER a few hours later when I called her. She and her husband have no health insurance, although their… Read more about What Its Like
The Current System Doesnt Work Either
Shortly after Bill Ritter was elected governor, he began his plan to fix a big problem in Colorado: 700,000 people without health insurance. He hasn’t given any specific plans on how he is going to go about it yet, but he said he will start looking at a lot of ideas that have been tried… Read more about The Current System Doesnt Work Either
Our Flawed Healthcare System
If you live in Colorado and don’t get your health insurance from your employer, finding health insurance can be difficult and confusing. The reason is because it’s not like shopping for any other insurance, financial, or retail product in the marketplace. In Colorado, you have two choices: an underwritten individual/family plan a non-underwritten plan like… Read more about Our Flawed Healthcare System
Cavalcade of Risk – New Years Edition
The Healthcare Economist makes his New Years resolutions with an interesting edition of the Cavalcade of Risk. This edition really sticks to health insurance and public policy issues relating to healthcare. The Colorado Health Insurance Insider is included in this edition. But my favorite article is about Jon Swift’s compassion toward John Derbyshire, who had an… Read more about Cavalcade of Risk – New Years Edition
Ritter Names Manitou Springs Mayor Insurance Commissioner
Gov.-elect Bill Ritter just appointed Marcy Morrison, the mayor of Manitou Springs, Colorado’s new Insurance Commissioner. The Colorado Springs Gazette reports that the Republican, who has served as a state lawmaker and El Paso County commissioner, will oversee regulation of the state’s insurance industry. Morrison said she has some ideas for the new job, but… Read more about Ritter Names Manitou Springs Mayor Insurance Commissioner
Tonik Rate Increase for Colorado Effective February 1, 2007
In 2005, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado launched Tonik, three simple, affordable and comprehensive individual PPO plans with a quick online application designed specifically for uninsured 20-somethings. So far, Tonik has done very well – in fact, 60 percent of Tonik applicants were previously uninsured, and 75 percent of Tonik applicants are… Read more about Tonik Rate Increase for Colorado Effective February 1, 2007
SEC Probes United Healthcare
I don’t think anybody will be surprised by the news that the SEC is looking into United Healthcare after their ex-CEO William McGuire’s stock option mess. McGuire was appointed president and CEO of what was then United Healthcare Corp. in 1989, then named chairman and CEO in 1991. Acquisitions he engineered helped United Healthcare rise… Read more about SEC Probes United Healthcare
Putting the Uninsured Numbers in Perspective
DavidHunnicutt.com just wrote an article putting the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation study on the uninsured in the U.S. in perspective. 46,100,000 out of 300,000,000 people in this country are without health insurance. Leaving 15% of the population, or 1 in 6, uninsured. If you factor out the number of Americans over age 65, the… Read more about Putting the Uninsured Numbers in Perspective
President Signs HSA Bill – What Do You Think?
President Bush signed the Health Opportunity Empowerment Act of 2006 yesterday, enhancing possible tax relief to those with an HSA. According to Treasury Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy Eric Solomon, the new bill “makes it easier for participants to put money aside for their personal health care”. What do you think? “As soon as I’m able… Read more about President Signs HSA Bill – What Do You Think?
President Bush Signs HSA Bill
President George W. Bush signed the Health Opportunity Patient Empowerment Act of 2006 today, enhancing Americans’ access to tax- advantaged health care savings. The law, part of the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006, provides new opportunities for health savings account (HSA) participants’ to build their funds. “Health savings accounts are improving the… Read more about President Bush Signs HSA Bill