What We're Reading: Colorado Asks Sanders to Help With Its Universal Healthcare Proposal

Colorado is considering a state ballot initiative that would establish universal healthcare for the state, and backers of the plan are reaching out to former presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders. Universal coverage was one of the cornerstones of Sanders’ presidential bid, and supporters of ColoradoCare are pitching Sanders to come and campaign on behalf of the measure, reported NPR. Opponents believe that the proposed program would be too expensive for small businesses and employees, and that Sanders should not jump in.

In Ohio, 22,000 people will have to find new health coverage after state’s insurance co-op collapsed. According to AP, these Ohioians may end up paying more for their coverage as they have to satisfy new deductibles and out-of-pocket minimums when they switch insurers. Meanwhile, in Connecticut, more than 14,000 adults on the Medicaid program are facing a similar situation. State budget cuts have led to a change in Medicaid eligibility, which means that thousands of adults will have to find new coverage, reported NBC Connecticut. Previously, households with 2 adults earning up to $32,000 were eligible for benefits, but that limit has gone down to $25,000 for the same 2-person household.

Getting a patient off a prescription can sometimes be a difficult task. A resident in internal medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston wrote in The Washington Post that many older patients have long medication lists, and sometimes a physician needs to take responsibility for de-prescribing. Unfortunately, changes in physicians’ prescribing behaviors are not the only solution—patients also have to be willing to come off of medicines that are no longer useful.