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Final report to the Colorado General Assembly by the Statewide Health Care Review Committee. The purpose of this committee is to study health care issues that affect Colorado residents throughout the state.

In response to the high rate of opioid-related addiction and deaths in Colorado, the Colorado General Assembly created the Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee.

During the 2019 session, the Colorado General Assembly considered several pieces of legislation related to state health programs, behavioral and mental health, reducing health care costs, hospital transparency, and advance directives.

In the 2020 session, the Colorado General Assembly considered measures related to the regulation of health care facilities, behavioral health and substance use, prescription drug costs, and abortion.

In the 2020 session, the Colorado General Assembly considered measures related to health insurance benefits, reinsurance, the Colorado Option health plan, and Medicaid.

This issue brief provides an overview of federal and state family, medical, and sick leave laws.

This memorandum summarizes legislative efforts since 2017 to control prescription drug prices.  It includes information on both bills that failed as well as those that became law. 

The General Assembly adopted several measures during the 2021 legislative session related to health care and insurance. 

Pursuant to Section 10-16-221, Colorado Revised Statutes, the Statewide Health Care Review Committee was created to study health care issues across the state.

This memorandum provides information about FY 2022-23 appropriations for state-funded behavioral health programs.  Information for this memorandum was taken from:

• the FY 2022-23 Long Bill, House Bill 22-1329;
• other bills that include funding for behavioral health programs;
• Joint Budget Committee (JBC) staff FY 2022-23 figure-setting documents and the JBC Appropriations Report FY 2022-23; and
• department staff.

Sunset laws allow the General Assembly to periodically review the need for state regulations, advisory committees, or state agencies and to update the law creating the agency or function.  To accomplish this review, committees of reference hold public sunset hearings on sunset reports issued by the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA).

The Governor and  General  Assembly  formed  the Behavioral Health Transformational Task  Force and  Subpanel to  develop  recommendations  in 2021. Comprised  of legislators, executive branch representatives, and  diverse behavioral health practitioners  and  experts, the Task  Force and  Subpanel undertook  a deliberative and  transparent  process.

Section 10-22-107, C.R.S., establishes the Colorado Health Insurance Exchange Oversight Committee (oversight committee) for guiding the implementation of the Colorado Health Benefit Exchange, which currently does business under the name Connect for Health Colorado (exchange), and making recommendations to the General Assembly.

Federal and state laws allow Medicaid applicants and clients who have their benefits denied, terminated, or reduced to appeal the decision. This issue brief provides an overview of the Medicaid appeals process in Colorado.

This issue brief discusses recent federal guidance related to 1332 state innovation waivers, the required criteria that must be met for approval of a waiver, the  components of federal law that can be waived, the application process for a waiver, the monitoring and review process for an approved waiver, and Colorado’s recent 1332 state innovation waiver applications.