Children's Hospital Colorado To Sen. Cory Gardner: It's Time To Act

AURORA, Colo., July 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- With the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA) slated to come up for debate in the U.S. Senate, Children's Hospital Colorado (Children's Colorado) is reiterating its call for U.S. Senator Cory Gardner (R - Colo.) to carry an amendment to the bill to limit the Medicaid coverage losses for Colorado's kids.

Children's Colorado has been advocating with Sen. Gardner on changes to the BCRA to limit the cuts to longstanding Medicaid coverage for children.

"For more than a half-century, long before the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and long before the health care debate was poisoned by partisanship, the United States has protected kids in need of healthcare," said Bill Lindsay, chairman of the board at Children's Hospital Colorado. "Senator Gardner has been an eloquent spokesman for the need to protect children on Medicaid, and now he has the opportunity to act on those principles."

The Medicaid expansion in the ACA did not primarily benefit children. Now, the current version of the BCRA goes far beyond simply repealing the ACA and would actually slash longstanding coverage for children that goes back to the creation of Medicaid in 1965. 

Children's Colorado strongly opposes the BCRA. An Avalere analysis estimates the bill would cut kids' Medicaid funding by $43 billion over 10 years. The amendment Children's Colorado is pushing would limit the deep cuts to children's funding in the bill, though funding would still be reduced relative to current law.

"We urge Senator Gardner to put forward an amendment to the BCRA to limit the bill's harm to children. Colorado's kids are counting on Cory," said Jena Hausmann, president and CEO of Children's Hospital Colorado.

Editorial boards across the state – from The Gazette in Colorado Springs to the Pueblo Chieftain and The Daily Sentinel in Grand Junction-- have called on Congress to protect the essential safety net for children's medical coverage.

Voters across Colorado agree. A public opinion survey by leading Republican polling firm The Tarrance Group found that, regardless of their political affiliation, 85% of Colorado voters agreed that "regardless of whether Obamacare is ultimately repealed or replaced, Congress should maintain the longstanding benefits that Medicaid has guaranteed children since 1965."

Last month, a bipartisan group of 39 business, community, and political leaders sent a letter to Colorado's U.S. Senators Gardner and Michael Bennet (D – Colo.), urging them to ensure that Medicaid coverage for children is not impacted by efforts to repeal and replace the ACA.

About Children's Hospital Colorado
Children's Hospital Colorado (Children's Colorado) has defined and delivered pediatric health care excellence for more than 100 years. Founded in 1908, Children's Colorado is a leading pediatric network entirely devoted to the health and well-being of children. Continually acknowledged as one of the nation's outstanding pediatric hospitals by U.S. News & World Report, Children's Colorado is known for both its nationally and internationally recognized medical, research, education and advocacy programs, as well as comprehensive everyday care for kids throughout Colorado and surrounding states. Children's Colorado is the winner of the 2015 American Hospital Association-McKesson Quest for Quality Prize, and is a 2013-2017 Most Wired hospital according to Hospitals & Health Networks magazine. Children's Colorado also is recognized for excellence in nursing from the American Nurses Credentialing Centers and has been designated a Magnet^® hospital since 2005. The hospital's family-centered, collaborative approach combines the nation's top pediatric doctors, nurses and researchers to pioneer new approaches to pediatric medicine. With urgent, emergency and specialty care locations throughout Metro Denver and Southern Colorado, including its campus on the Anschutz Medical Campus, Children's Colorado provides a full spectrum of pediatric specialties. For more information, visit www.childrenscolorado.org and connect with Children's Colorado on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

Children's Hospital Colorado complies with applicable Federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex.

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Media Contact: 
Elizabeth Whitehead, Children's Hospital Colorado
Media Pager: 303-890-8314

SOURCE Children’s Hospital Colorado

Related Links

http://www.childrenscolorado.org