While Republicans want to spend 2006 grandstanding over racial issues, Colorado Democrats want to come up with solutions to the state's problems: House and Senate Democratic leadership have several ideas for health care: lowering prescription drug costs by buying in bulk, making health insurance more affordable for small businesses by creating a government pool to help cover high claims, and subsidizing premium costs for low-income residents to encourage preventive care instead of relying on more expensive emergency treatment. The cost of employee health care is becoming a real drag on job creation and on the quality of existing jobs. I personally believe a national health care plan is the best solution, but Colorado's legislature can't make that happen. The state reinsurance pool being proposed by the Dems, especially, ought to work as a short-term fix while we wait for the transition to national health care. What's the Republican plan? Hassle brown people for ID when we try to use state services. And run it as a November ballot initiative, of course, because the point is to really just to get the "base" to the polls. After all, as Joe Stengel says, the next governor will get to make appointments to the Reapportionment Commission and maybe get to name a state Supreme Court justice or two. Update: Senator Salazar proposes a national commission to study health care reform. Are we seeing a coordinated, on-message Colorado Democratic Party?
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