Democrats in the Colorado legislature on Monday said they are setting aside their contentious effort this year to pass a bill creating a public health insurance option.
The prime backers of the legislation, House Bill 1349, say the coronavirus crisis has made it impossible to ensure that all of the relevant stakeholders — hospitals, doctors and insurance companies — can be involved in the lawmaking process.
But the Democrats pushing for the measure, which is a priority of Gov. Jared Polis, say the pandemic has highlighted the need for the public option, which was planned to be a private insurance plan with hospital prices and other strict regulations set by the state.
“While our state battles COVID-19, we note that this crisis is illuminating the vast gaps in our health care system,” state Rep. Dylan Roberts, an Avon Democrat, said in a written statement. “As the economic devastation unfolds and more Coloradans lose their access to employer-based insurance, it’s more clear than ever that our system is broken and that Coloradans deserve more choice and lower prices.”
State lawmakers are also facing significant budget cuts because of economic impacts of coronavirus that likely would have made passing the public option legislation nearly impossible. House Speaker KC Becker, a Boulder Democrat, alluded to that factor last week.
“Public option may not be realistic right now,” she said.
But up until last week Roberts and state Sen. Kerry Donovan, a Vail Democrat and another prime sponsor of the effort, were holding out hope.
Read more via The Colorado Sun.