This time of year offers a chance to reflect. Through the hustle and bustle of our day-to-day lives, it’s easy to get caught up in the whirlwind of activity and forget to celebrate what and whom we are grateful for. This year, I am personally grateful for close family and Read more
The election of Donald Trump was surprising, to say the least. In a victory anticipated by few, a President Trump opens the way for repeal of the Affordable Care Act, and with it many of the provisions meant to stabilize insurance markets and broaden coverage for individuals. The provisions of Read more
Guest Blogger: Douglas McCarthy In 2010, the CIVHC-led Data and Transparency Advisory Group set long-term goals for Colorado to move into the top tier of performance among states on key measures of health system performance. Thanks to the collaborative efforts of public and private stakeholders, the state has taken strides Read more
It is fair to say that the Olympics and supporting the greater Olympic community is a family passion. During The Games, we follow the athletes in their events, celebrating and commiserating through victory and defeat. We treasure our own Olympic moments and cheer on close friends who are still working Read more
On April 27th, CMS released proposed rules for the implementation of the Medicare and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), an act that heretofore was famous for containing the repeal of the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR). The SGR was uniformly hated by physicians and other providers, as it theoretically controlled the rate Read more
Plaintalk Blog Series – Introduction You spoke, and we listened. In late 2015, CIVHC sent out a survey asking for ways to advance our mission – better health, lower costs, and a healthier Colorado. We heard a recurring theme; many of you are unclear about what we do and how Read more
Originally featured on WantHealthcareLLC.com.In a recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association, economists from Stanford and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) did a very interesting thing. There is a general assumption that the richer you are, the longer you live, on average. This turns out to be Read more
Recently, I had the opportunity to chat with a national reporter about how the Supreme Court’s Gobeille vs. Liberty Mutual decision impacts Colorado’s All Payer Claims Database (CO APCD). She was surprised to learn that our perspective is significantly different from that of other states with APCDs, who feel the Read more
For many years we have been assuming that if Medicare costs were low in a particular region, like Grand Junction on our Western Slope, then commercial insurance (insurance like the kind many of us get through our employer) costs were also likely to be relatively low. A recent report in Read more
PROFILE: Cardiac and Stroke Care for Southwest Colorado In 2012, CIVHC reported that the Upper San Juan Health Service District (Pagosa Springs Medical Center) received a three-year, $1.7 million award from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. We recently followed up on the outcomes of the project. Life-threatening conditions are Read more