Perspective: Serious experience will treat what ails health care in Colorado»

Colorado’s new governor will face many important issues. An issue that is top of mind for many Coloradans is affordable, accessible, high quality, equitable health care — something eluding many of our family members, friends, and neighbors. There is no single or simple solution.

I read recently in these pages that single payer was again proposed as a solution to our state’s ongoing health care woes. As someone who has been engaged in health care leadership for two decades, I believe a single payer system is a feasible, and even desirable, option at a national level, but not at a state, or even regional level. Whether we like it or not, every state’s health care is part of a web of national programs like Medicare, Medicaid and veterans’ health care, that rely partly, or completely, on federal funding or their citizens are covered by private insurance that has federal protections and rules. Moreover, just two years ago, when Colorado voters were asked if they wanted a single-payer system, they rejected it by more than 78 percent, in large part because of the $25 billion price tag and its incredible complexity.

If we want to make progress toward a more affordable, more accessible, more equitable and high-quality health care system, we need solutions that are practical and doable. Donna Lynne’s experience in city and state governments, and as someone who actually ran a large, innovative, not-for-profit health care company, enable her to offer such solutions.

Donna was an integral part of the progress Colorado has made in the last eight years including reducing the uninsured rate from 15.8 percent (or 829,000 Coloradans) in 2011 to 6.5 percent by establishing a statebased insurance marketplace and expanding Medicaid. She is committed to hold on to this progress and build on it. She supports fiscally-responsible Medicaid expansion and approaches for a public-sector insurance buy-in. As Lieutenant Governor, she has fought for and will continue to support greater transparency and efficiency across the system.

Donna’s health care platform is achievable with her leadership. Donna’s plans include finishing the job of getting all Coloradans covered by health insurance by stabilizing the individual market and supporting public program enrollment, the first step in reducing cost system wide. She would improve value in health care by reducing costs and waste, reforming payment systems to put the right incentives in place and by making costs more transparent for patients and businesses. Finally, she would invest in public health and our health care workforce across the state, which would not only improve access, but also would have additional economic impacts, particularly in rural areas.

Donna Lynne brings practical, doable solutions, and the experience to operationalize them.