In order to save money, American patients and their surgeons are going out of the country to get treatment. Medical Tourism is on the rise. thanks to NASH, North American Specialty Hospital. 

The sheer number of billing abuses by Medicare Advantage plans is overwhelming and tax payers are paying the price, literally.  Sick patients are being charged higher rates than healthy ones, according to Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)

Social Security Works is collecting signatures, asking Democratic presidential candidates to reject taking money from Big Pharma and Big Insurance companies. HCACF supports their efforts.

NPR reports that over the past 3 years, Medicare has been overcharged an excess of $30 billion by different health insurers, and recuperating the money is a slow and difficult process. Medicare Advantage plans are the cause of this crisis. 

Sen. Michael Bennet is one of the Democratic Party’s chief mouthpieces for private insurance, promoting “Medicare X,” a plan that maintains private health insurance as its centerpiece. As a major recipient of money from insurance, PhARMA, hospitals and other segments of the medical industrial complex, Bennet adopts many of industry’s talking points, as former insurance executive and whistle blower Wendell Potter describes in this February 11, 2019 article that will continue to resonate into the coming year and months of presidential campaigning.

Phil Galewitz, from KHN Kaiser Health News, examines why an increasing number of businesses support universal health care.  The rising costs in our current system is certainly one of the reasons.   He interviewed several people, including Richard Master who stated  “Insurance companies are not watching the store and don’t have incentives to hold down costs in the current system.” 

Announcing the 4th Annual Universal Health Care Conference on Saturday, June 29th.  This is sponsored by the Colorado Foundation for Universal Health Care, co-sponsored by Health Care for All Colorado and Health Care for All Colorado Foundation.  Keynote Speaker: Wendell Potter – 20-year insurance executive turned whistle blower, author "Deadly Spin: Insurance Co. Insider speaks out on How Corporate PR is Killing Health Care & Deceiving Americans"

HCACF Board members Michele Swenson and Tom Gottlieb wrote a letter to the House Ways and Means committee in response to the recent Hearing on Pathways to Universal Health Coverage. 

On May 21, 2019, a Medicare for All Resolutions webinar was conducted to bring people together, as a coalition effort in support of "Healthcare is a Human Right". Melinda St. Louis, the Campaign Director for Medicare for All at Public Citizen was the facilitator for this event. 

HCACF co-president, Vince Markovchick recently facilitated 4 discussions about our healthcare system. These OLLI classes were offered at the University of Denver and focused on the history of healthcare, comparing our system to healthcare in other countries, and reasons for the high cost of care here in the United States.