As some politicians push for legislation that would explore eliminating Colorado’s current health care system—including the health coverage most Coloradans get through their employers—and replacing it with a one-size-fits-all new state government-controlled health insurance system, lawmakers should remember that Coloradans have already rejected the unaffordable costs and consequences of a so-called “single-payer” system controlled by the state government.

FLASHBACK:

• A proposed Colorado single-payer system “failed miserably” in 2016, with nearly 80 percent of Colorado voters rejecting it at the polls.
  
  
• The nonpartisan Colorado Health Institute estimated the one-size-fits-all system would cost nearly $64 billion per year by 2028 – an amount far larger than the state of Colorado’s entire operating budget – and run a $7.8 billion annual deficit.

At the same time, Coloradans are already experiencing the higher costs and negative consequences of ‘single-payer lite’ through the Colorado Option, whose supporters claimed it would lower costs and provide more choices. Instead, the Colorado Option has objectively failed to fulfill those promises: Premiums continue to rise for consumers and Coloradans today have fewer coverage choices than they did before the Colorado Option was implemented – the exact opposite of what Coloradans were promised.

Instead of endlessly pushing ahead with failed one-size-fits-all systems, Colorado policymakers should work together toward proven solutions that build on what is working within our current health care system to deliver greater health care affordability and access for Coloradans.