AARP Colorado members weigh in on Health Care Reform legislation
By Morie Smile, AARP Colorado State Director
AARP staff and volunteers have attended meetings throughout the state listening to members talk about the pros and cons of health care reform. We’ve spent countless hours educating members on what our specific asks are within any legislation and dispelling myths such as death panels and the demise of Medicare. The conversations for the most part have been thoughtful and civil with a give and take instead of the vitriol we’ve all seen on various news outlets in other parts of the country.
Recently, AARP made the decision to endorse HR 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act, which just passed the House of Representatives. It was with great deliberation that our volunteer Board of Directors did so after hearing from approximately 4 million members who participated in Town Hall meetings around the country and hearing from public policy analysts both within our organization and externally. Our endorsement is based on the priorities our members have been telling us – affordable coverage for younger members, and protecting and improving Medicare, especially the doughnut hole for those in Medicare – and has been the basis for our advocacy from day one. Despite a highly politicized debate on an incredibly personally important issue, our members overwhelmingly support the key aspects of the House bill that we fought to include.
Based on polling numbers just in, we find our Colorado members agree with our decision to support the legislation currently facing Congress – by almost two to one, (62.7% to 33%) the House bill that we endorsed. Scratch the surface and you find that support for key AARP priorities runs deeper, across party and ideological lines.
Why are Coloradans overwhelmingly supportive? Here are some of the findings:
78% support measures that would prevent insurance companies from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions;
78% support measures that would ensure that people can see the doctor of their choice;
77% support the bill’s provisions that ensure that you can keep your current health insurance coverage if you are happy with it.
This legislation also takes into account the needs of the 96,000 Coloradans who are 50 – 64 years old by creating new rules for insurance companies so they can no longer discriminate against people based on age or pre-existing conditions.
For the 524,000 Coloradans who depend on Medicare for stable, affordable health care the House bill protects traditional Medicare benefits for seniors, improves Medicare prescription drug coverage, and aggressively cracks down on waste, fraud and abuse.
After decades of failed attempts to fix a broken health care system, we find ourselves at a point where one in three Americans say someone in their family has skipped pills, has postponed or cut back on needed medical care because it cost too much. Countless bankruptcies are related to medical expenses, and employers struggle to pay for the costs of health care. There are almost 50 million Americans without health care coverage, and those of us lucky enough to have it increasingly worry about whether we’ll have it next year.
The fact is, we can’t afford not to fix health care.
Seeking Accessible, Affordable and Quality Health Care
