Colorado State Senator May Introduce Bill Allowing Rural Towns to Contract Directly for Care

To help prevent insurance companies from exiting the rural Colorado market, state Sen. Bob Hagedorn (D) plans to introduce a bill that would allow "smaller towns" and rural areas with populations of 20,000 or less to contract directly with health care providers. Several insurance companies have pulled out of the rural Colorado market in recent months, maintaining that the small population cannot support a network of health care providers and that "they can't make money." In addition to Hagedorn's bill, state House Majority Leader Lola Spradley (R) has proposed similar legislation ( HB 1374) that "attempt[s] to increase the number of physicians available in rural areas by putting more flexibility into the requirements for setting up a health care network." However, Spradley's bill, unlike the legislation proposed by Hagedorn, would allow insurance companies to charge higher rates for "people with health problems" and lower rates for "healthy people," a practice called "rate banding." Spradley's bill would allow rates up to 20% higher than market standard for "sick" people and up to 40% lower for "healthy people" -- a provision Hagedorn criticized as "discriminatory." According to the Denver Post, the full state House will likely consider Spradley's bill this week (Brown, Denver Post, 4/17).