I can’t wait to get on Medicare. As a professional individual who does not receive health insurance through my employer, I have been jumping from health plan to health plan trying to keep my insurance affordable and the co-pays and deductibles within my budget.
I just got on Rocky Mountain Health Plans, but they are withdrawing from the health exchange in December for most of Colorado so I have to start shopping again. Meanwhile, the prices keep going up with no end in sight. As long as health care remains under the control of the health insurance industry, the health of all Americans will always take a back seat to profit. The top priority of health insurance companies, including Aetna and United Healthcare, is profit for their shareholders and top executives. Aetna has made $7 billion in profit since January 2014, and United Healthcare CEO Stephen Hemsley took home over $66 million in salary that year.
Their recent excuse of withdrawing from the health exchange due to a loss of a few million dollars is another ploy to manipulate the system and gain financial advantage. According to one well-known blogger, in the eyes of for-profit insurers, it’s those “pesky policyholders who need care” that are the problem.
With ColoradoCare, we can all benefit from a universal system similar to Medicare – simple, accessible, affordable, and with continuous lifetime coverage that saves billions from decreased insurance administrative costs. ColoradoCare spends money on actual health care services while leaving $4.5 billion in Coloradans’ pockets. It is operated and governed like a cooperative, with a board of trustees that is accountable to the citizens of Colorado, not shareholders.
We have a choice. Say no to insurance companies. Vote “yes” in November for ColoradoCare, Amendment 69.
Sherrod Beall
Durango
