Amendment 69 on the November, 2016 Ballot: Universal Health Care System Proposal
Senator Irene Aguilar, M.D. Keynote Speaker
T.R. Reid, Author, Lecturer, Documentary Film Maker, Panelist (left)
Jeffrey R. Helton, PhD, CMA, CFE, FHFMA, Panelist (right)
The following quote is from the DMSG’s President during his introductory comments on Sept. 29, 2016: “Sen. Aguilar, M.D., is the only practicing physician in the Colorado state legislature and the force behind the creation of ColoradoCare, Amendment 69, which creates a universal health care system in the state of Colorado. Amendment 69, if passed on November 8, 2016, will be a modification to the Constitution of Colorado.”
Sen. Aguilar shared with us the benefits of Amendment 69 including (1) everyone contributing including employers, employees, non-payroll and the self-employed, (2) savings from reduced complexity and bulk negotiation and (3) the prioritization of care of complex, high cost patients.
As most of you remember the results of the voting for Amendment 69, it was soundly defeated by approximately 80% against to 20% for the amendment.
It’s now the summer of 2020 and we’re looking at another national election this November with one of the main issues being healthcare—-with all the weaknesses and failures extremely magnified by the COVID-19 pandemic and our country’s inability to respond to the situation. We have never, to my knowledge, had an economic depression that was caused by non-monetary issues, in other words, the coronavirus pandemic. So this is a new “road to travel”.
But in looking back to Senator Aguilar’s slide presentation on September 29, 2016, there seems to be a lot of the same issues today as there were then. The phrases “Universal Care” and the “Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHB)” are surfacing this time around.
So, the question now is where do we go now? If you have some ideas, I’d like to hear them.
Feel free to email me at denvermedicalstudygroup@gmail.com.
Chris Hadley
Founder and President
Denver Medical Study Group, Inc.
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