Dear Colleague:
The 72nd Colorado General Assembly has convened for the Second Regular Session. Governor Jared Polis has continued his vow to reduce the cost of health care in the 2020 Legislative Session. In 2019, the Legislature passed many bills aimed at just that issue including hospital reinsurance, hospital transparency, prescription drug pricing, and more. During the session ahead, which convened last Wednesday, it is expected that legislators will push for further progress on those fronts and more.
As the many proposals get introduced to make health care more affordable, COPIC will continue to be a voice for maintaining access to safe, quality health care.
How will we do that?
Maintaining access to health care providers
COPIC identified at its inception that a stable tort environment is key to attracting and retaining highly qualified physicians to practice in Colorado. COPIC pursued tort reform to stabilize insurance rates and to allow those savings to be passed on to health care providers. As a result, the Health Care Availability Act (HCAA) was enacted with bipartisan support in 1988. The HCAA places caps on damages in a professional liability case which prevents excessive jury awards and allows stability and predictability in insurance premiums.
Colorado enjoys a very stable tort environment as a result of these early efforts which aids in the recruitment and retention of providers to the state. COPIC is committed to maintaining this stability and will monitor legislation that may disrupt this balance.
Improving patient safety
While access to care is important, access to quality care is critical. One way to assure this is to foster an environment where health care providers are encouraged to review their peers; to report adverse outcomes and near misses and learn from them; and to educate others. COPIC supports and defends legislation as well as current laws and regulations that uphold and improve these pillars in health care. To that end, COPIC will be monitoring the numerous professional licensure reauthorizations before the legislature this year, including the Colorado State Board of Nursing Act, to ensure that any changes do not result in compromised care delivery.
To be successful, COPIC works closely with its health care partners, elected officials, and regulators, but we also need your support. Stay tuned to our email updates and alerts as we may be calling on you to use your voice on these important issues this year
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If you have any questions, please contact COPIC’s Vice President of Public Affairs, Beverly Razon, at (720) 858-6056 or brazon@copic.com.
Thank you.
Gerald Zarlengo, M.D. (Chairman/CEO) and Beverly Razon (Vice President, Public Affairs)
COPIC