Making High Quality Health Care Affordable, Reliable and Portable

Each year, the high cost of health care sends 700,000 Americans into bankruptcy – and nearly 45,000 to an early grave.  Every day, someone in Colorado dies from a medical problem he or she cannot afford to treat or prevent.   

That should not happen – not in the 21st century, not in the richest nation on earth.  America’s health-care providers are among the finest in the world, but the system that finances and delivers our care is structurally flawed.  Too many Americans are paying too much for insurance that covers too little, and too many don’t have any coverage at all.   

A Record of Leadership 

Thousands of Coloradans have been forced to do battle with their insurance companies just to get coverage they’ve already purchased. In 2008, Andrew Romanoff fought the insurance industry and won. The result: a new law that requires insurers to pay what they owe when they owe it – and stiffens penalties on those who don’t.  

Andrew voted to reduce Coloradans’ prescription-drug prices, by pooling our purchasing power with other states. He supported efforts to supply rural Coloradans and other underserved communities with greater access to care, by investing in local health clinics and expanding the use of telemedicine.  He also authored laws to:  

• help Colorado’s seniors get the care they need in their own homes and communities;
• save millions of dollars in state medical expenses by holding private insurers to higher standards of accountability;
• make contracts between health-care providers and insurers more transparent;
• provide health coverage – including access to the Children’s Health Insurance Program, mental health services, and drug and alcohol treatment – to thousands of Coloradans.

Andrew’s leadership has been recognized by Colorado’s leading health and human service organizations, including the Colorado Psychological Association, the Colorado Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, the Colorado Dental Association, the Colorado Community Health Network, the Colorado Society of Osteopathic Medicine, the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, the Colorado Association of Alcohol and Drug Service Providers, Peer Assistance Services,Crossroads Turning Points, and Advocates for Recovery. In 2006, the Colorado Medical Society named Andrew as Defender of the Patient –the physicians’ highest honor. 

A Plan of Action 

Andrew will fight to secure high-quality health care for all Americans.  His plan calls for coverage that is affordable, reliable, and portable.  

Andrew supports President Obama’s leadership on this critical issue.  Andrew will work to strengthen health-care reform, by taking steps to curb costs and improve health outcomes.  Among his priorities:

• Offer consumers a public option.
• Remove the insurance industry’s exemption from anti-trust laws.
• Pursue a universal single-payer or non-profit model. 
• Promote prevention and early intervention.
• Increase the use of health information technology.
• Expand consumer choice and encourage innovation among health-care providers.
• Coordinate services and reform reimbursement formulas to reward value, not just volume.
• Promote personal responsibility for health decisions, by reducing co-payments for check-ups and wellness programs.