Supreme Court King v. Burwell Decision is a Healthy Win for Americans

NEWS STATEMENT                                    Contact: Maureen Maxwell
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                     (303) 861-5165, ext. 259
June 25, 2015                                                                  maureen@cchn.org

Supreme Court King v. Burwell Decision is a Healthy Win for Americans

Statement attributable to
Polly Anderson
Chief Operating Officer
Colorado Community Health Network (CCHN)

DENVER― Today we are breathing a sigh of relief for the millions of Americans who will continue to receive the benefits of quality, affordable health insurance, benefits Coloradans were already able to count on. For the second time, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act and assured that our nation continues to see the benefits of this law. While we still have much work to do to reach health equity for all, this ruling keeps us on the path toward that goal.

We were holding our breath, because although Colorado set up our own state-based health insurance exchange, two-thirds of the Community Health Centers in America are in states that did not set up health insurance exchanges. With subsidies to purchase insurance, many of the newly insured for the first time in their lives gained access to both insurance and regular primary and preventive care, which are critical to staying healthy and out of hospitals.

Colorado’s foresight to create its own health insurance marketplace, as well as expand health insurance to working families and individuals, has meant that nearly 500,000 previously uninsured Coloradans now have access to quality, affordable health care. Colorado’s insurance marketplace and other health reform efforts have reduced the state’s uninsured rate from 17 percent to 11 percent, the fifth largest drop in uninsured rate among all states.

Community Health Centers will stay true to their 50-year mission of providing care to all people, regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay. The current demand for affordable primary care services among the insured and uninsured continues to grow and shows no sign of abating in the future.

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To interview Ms. Anderson, please contact Maureen Maxwell at (303) 861-5165, Ext. 259; cell (303) 913-9078; or maureen@cchn.org.

The Colorado Community Health Network (CCHN) is the unified voice for Colorado’s 18 Community Health Centers (CHCs) and their patients. CHCs provide a health care home to almost 650,000 of their community members – more than one in eight people in Colorado – from 60 of the state’s 64 counties. Without CHCs, hundreds of thousands of Colorado’s low-income families and individuals would have no regular source of health care. CCHN’s mission is to increase access to high quality health care for people in need in Colorado. For more information about CCHN, please visit www.cchn.org.