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Contact: Brianne Spellane |
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CIAB APPLAUDS DEFEAT OF COLORADO BALLOT INITIATIVE, AMENDMENT 69
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| WASHINGTON, D.C. – November 9, 2016 – The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers applauded yesterday’s defeat of Colorado ballot initiative Amendment 69. With 86 percent of precincts reporting, the amendment was headed toward sound defeat, 79.6 percent to 20.4 percent. The measure, also known as “ColoradoCare,” threatened to completely dissolve employer-provided health benefits and private workers compensation policies in the State of Colorado by creating a state-operated single-payer health regime. It would also have eroded the market for workers’ compensation policies.
“We’re gratified to see a vast majority of Coloradans agree that dissolving the market for employer-sponsored insurance would have only hurt Coloradans, their economy and their health insurance options,” said Ken A. Crerar, President/CEO of The Council. “The health insurance markets are in a transformative period. With premiums skyrocketing in the individual markets, Coloradans chose to hold on to the stability provided by employer-sponsored insurance. If Amendment 69 passed, every Colorado citizen with ESI would have soon lost their coverage without any certainty of its replacement, would have faced higher taxes and would have ceded nearly every decision about their healthcare to a 21 person board. We’re thankful that Coloradans agree that a government takeover of health insurance is not a responsible alternative to ESI.” “The emergence, rise and fall of Colorado’s Amendment 69 highlights the market’s demand for new ways of delivering affordable health care,” said Robert Cohen, chairman and chief executive officer of The IMA Financial Group Inc., in Denver, Colo., and The Council’s Chairman. “We appreciate the conversation that’s been started about health care and agree with Coloradans that Amendment 69 wasn’t the solution. Even though Amendment 69 didn’t pass voters’ scrutiny, it put a spotlight on the ideas that rapidly change the insurance industry.” The Council announced its alignment with the bipartisan organization Coloradans for Coloradans to oppose Amendment 69 this past May. |