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Policy & Advocacy
CCHI’s vision is that one day all Coloradans will have barrier-free access to quality, affordable health care. We are working towards this goal through a number of avenues, one of which is advocating for policy changes that further consumer-friendly health care reform. Spheres of Influence Our policy staff lobbies for viable, sustainable policies capable of solving our healthcare crisis. We work principally at the state level, but occasionally weigh in on national and local policy debates as well. CCHI represents consumers at a variety of state venues including the State Legislature, the Colorado Board of Health, and the Colorado Medical Services Board. Why is CCHI principally state level? Our nation’s health care “system” is executed principally by state government – public programs for individuals under 65 are run by states, and private insurance markets are regulated by states. States are on the front lines of health care delivery and financing. It is for this reason that CCHI focuses primarily on improving Colorado’s health care system. Exceptions to this rule typically are when a policy change at the local or national level will significantly impact Colorado and CCHI’s voice would make a difference in the debate. An example is the national debate in 2007 concerning reauthorization of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Since this is a program that brings significant federal health care dollars into our state to cover low income children, CCHI joined the Colorado SCHIP Coalition that lobbied Congress to reauthorize the program and increase funding levels. Taking Policy Positions CCHI is a coalition of consumer advocacy organizations and individual consumers. We are a membership-based organization and therefore it is our members who help determine the direction of the organization and the policy positions we take. Public Policy Committee The CCHI Public Policy Committee meets regularly to debate policies, make recommendations where appropriate to the CCHI Board of Directors on policy positions, and to strategize what action should be taken. All members of CCHI are welcome at public policy committee meetings and have a vote (one per organization) on policy recommendations. CCHI’s policy positions include strong support, support, neutral, oppose and strong oppose. A ‘strong’ position indicates that CCHI staff is directed by membership to actively lobby for or against a particular policy proposal. We operate by consensus – we only weigh in on policies upon which we can all agree. CCHI’s Health Care Bill List In addition to the public policy committee meetings, members of CCHI have access to the CCHI bill list, where all state healthcare-related legislation is tracked on an ongoing basis by CCHI staff during legislative session (January to May every year). This is made available online on this website under the member login. CCHI’s Policy Agenda It is very important that CCHI has a proactive agenda that furthers consumer-friendly health care reform. Certainly it is the nature of our work that sometimes an opportunity presents itself to participate in getting someone else’s good policy passed. Likewise, the reverse exists, where it is necessary that CCHI reacts quickly to fight against bad policy and minimize potential damage to consumers. However, it is important that we do not get too caught up in the moment, but keep our eye on the prize! For this reason, we spend time every year engaging our membership in strategic planning. The policy priorities that come out of these discussions form our policy agenda and inform our legislative work every year. For a listing of our current policy priorities, please visit our “Policy Priorities” page. For a listing of our past policy accomplishments, please visit our “Accomplishments” page. |
